The Curse of the Golden Spirit
by IsNotSane
Summary: NEW CHAP! KxJ, YYxY, BxR, etc. The Golden Spirit... the supposedly haunted hotel the Yugi gang needs to research for school. But what does this hotel have to do with Joey, Kiaba, and their decks when they are unwillingly partnered for the assignment?
1. The Prologue

**Author's notes: **I often feel a lot of people use their author's notes section to gloat or rant about themselves. I'll save you guys the annoyance and just leave you with the necessities:

There's a disclaimer. Damned if I can be bothered typing it.

There's warnings, too... I'd better type those... (sweatdrop). Yaoi (obviously)... something along the lines of a main KaibaxJoey pairing, and then there's YamixYugi, BakuraxRyou, and very possibly a lot others. Umm... there's not much in this chapter (since it's just a prologue), but there's gonna be supernatural themes, language, sexual situations, adult content... (Man! I sound like the opening warnings for Rove Live... you Aussies will know what I mean...) hence, the R rating. But I'm not too sure... we'll see what comes up in later chapters. Enjoy!

* * *

**The Curse of the Golden Spirit**

By IsNotSane

* * *

**1. The Prologue**

It was a warm spring night. A perfect spring night... the warm air was gently blowing into the small room through the open window, making the thin curtains wave with the serenity. It was dark out, but without a cloud in the sky. The moon shone brightly and proudly among the earth, giving a tranquil blue tint to everything beneath it. The stars were bright and peaceful. The trees only slightly waved with the wind, complimenting the calming atmosphere with the soft sound of leaves rustling in the distance.

Two sleeping bodies lay naked under a thin sheet on the bed. The shorter was draped over the taller one, his cheek against the taller's chest, the other's arm lazily around the shorter's waist. Their breathing was deep and silent, and the only movements of their raising and falling chests were emphasised by the blue glow of the moon – the only source of light pouring into the bedroom.

Everything was perfectly serene... nothing was out of place, not a sound was made that shouldn't be, not a drift of wind in the wrong direction...

Yami opened his eyes with quick intensity, taking in a sharp breath but not daring to move as a revelation hit him.

'_Something's wrong...'_

* * *

****

Bakura shot up from his relaxed, sleeping position on the bed. Sweat beads were forming on his forehead as he breathed. Ryou, who had been lying peacefully on top of him, stirred, and tiredly opened his eyes, awakened by his lover's quick movement.

Bakura, breathing shallowly, slowly looked to the open window to the serene night outside.

"Bakura...?" Ryou questioned, a little confused and sounding scratchy from sleep. He sat up beside his spirit, rubbing his own eyes from the sleep. It was still very early, they needn't get up for a while... so what was wrong? The white haired angel - still hazy from sleep - looked to his counterpart with concern. "Are you alright?"

"...Something's wrong..."

* * *

****

Seto's hands froze over the keyboard to his laptop. He had opened his window earlier, to let the warm breeze in, but now he looked out it.

Frowning, the CEO quickly saved his report before getting up off his seat, and making his way to get a better look out of the window. Something wasn't right.

It was dark out, he couldn't see anyone in the yard and there wasn't a sound... but he could have sworn...

"Mokuba?" He called out to the empty yard. But that was crazy, Mokuba was sleeping in his room.

No reply answered his call.

Cautiously, Seto glanced at his desk clock next to his laptop. The bright red figures read "3.21am". Sighing deeply, the brunette shook his head. It was getting too late. He dismissed his weariness and closed the window, before moving to shut down his laptop. He needed some rest.

* * *

****

**TBC**


	2. The Awakening

For warnings, check prologue please

**2. The Awakening**

Where was this world? Where was he? Was he destined to live in this place forever? It was so dark... could he ever get back home?

'_Home... Where is that? I... I can't remember...'_

* * *

Yugi inhaled deeply, feeling warmth penetrate his small body. Blinking several times, Yugi smiled. He felt good today. He didn't know why, he was just able to sleep really, really well that night. The small boy stretched in his layed position, before sitting up and realizing something was missing.

Blinking several more times, Yugi frowned as he realized a certain pharaoh wasn't asleep beside him. _'Where...?'_

"Sleep well?" Came his answer before he was even able to think his question. Yugi smiled as he saw Yami standing at the open window, looking outside. Bright sunlight was pouring from the window, bathing his body in the warn rays. No wonder he had felt so good.

"Yeah... How long have you been awake?" Yugi, still smiling, asked his pharaoh while staring at his back, seeing that Yami was already fully dressed. He made no move to get out of the bed, but just stretched again. He had slept so well...

"...A while."

The blunt tone made Yugi look at his pharaoh again. He raised a concerned eyebrow, but didn't know whether he should question him or not. A second thought popped into his mind, and the small teen frowned, as he looked towards his alarm clock. _'Why hadn't the alarm gone off?' _

The bright red figures blurred a number to him. "3.21am... that's not right..." Yugi thought, puzzled as he looked outside the window again just to make sure he wasn't imagining daytime.

The small teen's confused words piped Yami's interest, and he turned his gaze away from the outdoors to look over his shoulder at Yugi and the clock.

"It must have stopped." Yami stated the obvious... which was probably necessary in Yugi's case. Yugi looked at him with wide eyes, a little unsure, but Yami just looked back outside.

Suddenly feeling self-conscious, Yugi blushed and wrapped the sheet more fully around his naked body – naked save, of course, the large millennium puzzle hanging from around his neck. He moved to the edge of the bed and reached down to grab his boxers. After slipping them on under the sheets, the small boy got up and dressed himself quickly and silently. Once he was done, he went to stand behind Yami, who hadn't moved away from looking out the window. He wasn't too close... and wasn't sure what to do next.

"Uh..." He began timidly, looking down at the ground. Yami looked behind him, and turned fully when he saw that Yugi was standing before him. He looked at the small teen expectantly.

"Umm... Yami... did I... do something wrong?" The small teen asked, looking up with wide eyes to his love. Yami slightly raised an eyebrow at the teen's question, and Yugi, apparently taking that as a bad sign, looked away and bit his lip. He looked lost as to what to do.

But after observing his small lover, Yami stepped closer to the youth.

"Why would you think that...?" he asked softly, slightly puzzled. Yugi looked up at Yami with bright, hopeful eyes.

"I... I dunno. You just seem... angry..."

Yami looked down at his timid counterpart. The youth almost looked... _afraid_. Was he really that scared that Yami would be upset with him...?

The taller pharaoh felt his fingers twitch with the thought of Yugi being scared of something that involved him. He hated to think that he could even take that precious smile of Yugi's away...

With a feeling of guilt, Yami stepped forward and embraced the smaller teen, who just as eagerly hugged back. He had to lean down a bit, but he didn't mind. He just needed to hold Yugi...

"I'm sorry, little one..." Yami began, now caressing the small teen's hair. He kissed the side of his neck, before talking again. "I didn't mean to be so distant. I just have... a strange feeling."

Yugi pulled back from the embrace to look Yami in the eyes. "What sort of feeling?" He asked, curiously but with caution. Yami straightened and looked to the side, feeling the weight of the feeling hit him.

"I'm... not sure, exactly. It's just... not right. Something's not right... I can feel a disruption in the atmosphere."

Yugi frowned at that, feeling rather stupid. All he could think about when he woke up was how wonderful the day felt.

"Ah... okay..."

"It's almost time for school." Yami spoke, as he turned back to look out the window. Yugi blinked at the taller, and tried to refrain from sighing sadly. Whatever this feeling was, it was really bothering Yami.

"You're not coming...?" Yugi asked, trying not to let the disappointment be evident in his tone.

"Not today."

Yugi lowered his eyes briefly before looking back up at the back of his love. He silently walked up behind the strong pharaoh, and wrapped his arms around his waist, resting his cheek against the small of his back.

Feeling his young lover lean against him, Yami closed his eyes and breathed in. He cherished the younger with all his heart and soul... and he wouldn't know what he would do if he ever let anything happen to him. But this feeling he had... it somehow concerned the young teen. He didn't know how... and he didn't know why, but he just knew it did. He knew if he were inside the millennium puzzle, he wouldn't be able to follow the flow of the atmosphere... he just hoped Yugi would be okay without him for a bit. Just as silently as Yugi had approached him, the Pharaoh gently grasped Yugi's hands in his own, and brought them up to his lips, kissing each one before squeezing them reassuringly.

"Go now... You're going to be late. Make sure everyone else is alright, too". He told the youth.

"Okay..."

A few seconds passed without any movement.

"Ah... Yami... I'm kinda going to need my hands back." Yugi smiled behind the pharaoh.

Yami looked down with surprise, and embarrassingly realized he hadn't let go of the small teen's hands. He silently let them go, and made a small movement that resembled a nod.

Yugi chuckled and hugged Yami one last time from behind before running in the opposite direction, yelling "See you later!"

* * *

"Hey guys!" Yugi yelled as he ran to his friends, who were already seated at homeroom. There was still about five minutes left before school actually started, but this gave them a chance to talk.

Tristan, Tea, and Duke were all seated with their chairs repositioned to face each other around a table, all talking animatedly. Three heads turned towards Yugi once he approached them.

"Hi, Yugi!" Tea greeted enthusiastically.

"How're ya, Yug?" Tristan greeted with a grin, and even Duke smiled and nodded his greeting.

"I'm doing great, actually. It's such a great day, don't you think?" He said, just as exuberantly as he pulled up a chair. The whole school seemed to be in a good mood with the wonderful, bright day. Yugi thought it was great. "So where are the others...?" he asked as an afterthought, remembering Yami's words.

"Dunno. They haven't showed up yet. Which is really strange for Ryou if you think about it... I mean, doesn't that guy come to school an hour earlier to fit in extra 'study time'?" Tristan shrugged as he attempted Ryou's accent. Tea raised her eyebrow.

"If that was meant to sound like Ryou, you need a lot of practice." She commented dryly. Tristan narrowed his eyes at her, but didn't say anything. Duke sniggered. Smiling victoriously, Tea continued, "And we all know Joey... it's Monday, he probably got lost on the way to school."

Duke grinned at this, but decided not to comment when he saw Yugi's disapproving look.

"That wasn't very nice, Tea."

Tea sighed, but then apologized sincerely, making Yugi beam at her. The bell rang, and the four of them rearranged their seats into their original position as their homeroom teacher entered the room. Just as she was about to close the door, Ryou rushed into the room, and into his seat, panting, but wearing a relieved smile that he had made it on time. He hadn't missed one class yet.

The teacher raised an eyebrow at the big-haired teen, but didn't say anything. She knew he had a perfect attendance record, so there wasn't much point. Yugi smiled at Ryou, who enthusiastically returned it as the teacher started the roll call.

When she had finished, the class began to brightly chat with one another. Ryou moved one seat up, seeing as Joey wasn't there, to speak to Yugi.

"Hi Yugi," He greeted.

"Why were you late?" Yugi questioned, curious.

"Yeah... don't you normally come, like, an hour earlier?" Tristan asked loudly as he leaned over, trying to prove his point.

Ryou looked at him strangely but answered anyway, "Yeah, I do usually."

"...What for again...?" Tristan asked, sounding obviously like he was waiting for something. Tea and Duke rolled their eyes, but Tristan was still looking at Ryou waiting for an answer. The light-haired teen blinked at Tristan's strange behaviour, but didn't want to be rude.

"Ah... for extra study time-"

"See!" Tristan stood up and yelled in Victory. Duke and Tea both looked away and shook their heads, and Yugi just blinked up at Tristan. Ryou looked at the others for an explanation, but didn't receive one. Yugi merely shrugged unsurely, and Tea grabbed Tristan's arm and pulled him forcefully back down to his seat.

"No one cares what he sounds like!" She yelled at the brunette, who was rubbing his arm from where Tea had grabbed him.

"Alright, alright!" Tristan looked away from the girl. Ryou frowned at this...

"What's wrong with the way I sound...?" the teen asked, suddenly insecure.

"Nothing, Tristan's just a dork." Tea supplied smugly. Tristan fumed, but didn't say anything. He was twitching with the restraint of keeping from fighting with a girl.

"Anyway..." Yugi said loudly, so everyone would pay attention, "as I was saying... why were you late today? Did you're alarm break? Mine did..." the small teen trailed off in thought.

"No actually. It was strange. Bakura didn't want me to come to school today. He said he had a strange feeling..." Ryo shook his head at the memory, as if it were ridiculous. "Anyway, it took me a while to convince him that I'd be fine. Of course he didn't admit that he was scared for my safety... you know Bakura." Ryou suddenly reddened, remembering that his secret love wasn't very liked by the others. Tristan had crossed his arms and looked away, but Yugi was looking at him wide-eyed.

"He had a strange feeling?" Yugi asked. Ryou pursed his lips suspiciously at the question but nodded. "Yami said the exact same thing!" Yugi explained. Ryou frowned at this news. He had thought Bakura was talking about something silly, like a person at school planning to trip him or something. He didn't really think the spirit was being _that_ serious.

"Is he here?" Ryou asked, referring to Yami. Yugi shook his head and the others looked at him strangely.

"He decided to stay home today... I think he's meditating or something..." Yugi shrugged.

"Yeah," Ryou said, "Bakura decided to stay home today as well. I wonder if this is something serious...?"

They all looked a little nervous before the bell rang for classes to start. They agreed to meet at lunch to discuss this further, before they went their separate ways.

* * *

Joey stirred in his bed, sweat pouring down his forehead and screwed eyelids. He was panting while he twisted and turned in the thin sheets, and every so often a soft whine would emit from his pursed lips.

He was having another nightmare.

Inside of the blonde's head was images of nothing... there was nothing but it was the worst thing in the world... just blackness. A blackness that was consuming everything around him, taking everything away from him... leaving him in nothingness...

Joey gasped in a breath of air, as he swung up into a sitting position in his bed. His mouth gapped, eyes wide and body shaking, Joey looked around, trying to remember what was going on. There were so many dark images...

As Joey got in more breaths, he managed to look around at his surroundings. He was in his room. It was just a dream...

'_Again...'_

Joey closed his eyes and exhaled deeply as he came back to his senses. He rubbed the sweat from his forehead before rubbing his eyes. He appeared to have calmed down, but he was still shaking.

'_That stupid dream again...'_

Joey swallowed hard, before opening his eyes again. His eyes hurt... his head hurt. He could feel a splitting migraine coming on, and blamed the dream for it. He could never remember what happened in those stupid nightmares... all he remembered was the feeling he had experienced. For the last few weeks, he had been waking up every morning with deep fear and darkness embedded in his mind. He didn't even know why... there wasn't even a logical reason as to why he should be feeling that way. But for some reason... it always lasted much loner than his nightmares had...

Joey sighed, and outstretched his arms so he was looking at his hands. They were still shaking. It would normally take a nice warm shower to calm his nerves and ease his emotions after the reoccurring nightmare. But for some reason, he didn't think that was a good idea right now. He felt... weird and just wanted to stay in bed. The nightmare had somehow been different this time... _worse_ this time. Sure, he could never remember what actually happened in the dream, but he could just tell. He didn't need to remember what happened in the dream to know that it was really, _really_ bad. He wasn't even sure he wanted to remember.

No, this dream had _definitely_ been worse. It seemed to have lasted longer, too. Normally, his watch alarm would wake him before the dream went on too long...

'_Wait a minute...'_ Joey narrowed his eyes as he remembered his alarm. Puzzled as to why it hadn't gone off, Joey reached for the watch that peacefully sat on his bedside table. Grabbing it, Joey blinked. The digital figures had gone red...

'_That's strange...' _Joey thought, _'I thought I set it on blue... 3.21am? What the hell?'_

Joey looked outside. Definitely not 3 in the morning... it was so bright outside, it looked almost midday. _'Midday...?' _

Joey's eyes widened.

* * *

**TBC**


	3. The Project

**3. The Project**

Lunch had come, and the day still proved to be breezy. Even the teachers must have slept well, taking into account that they gave out hardly as much detentions as usual. The group of friends had met just as they had planned, outside beneath the large oak tree in the school's grass field. Why spend such a beautiful day trapped in the cafeteria?

Yugi was just joining the group, when a blonde bombshell landed in front of them. Five heads turned toward the panting teen with wide eyes.

"I'm here!" Joey announced after finally catching his breath. He looked up and smiled at the confused faces.

"Ah... hey man... you do realize it's almost 12?" Tristan asked, raising an eyebrow. Joey sat up properly now that he had regained his composure, and crossed his legs beneath him, sitting on the grass in front of the group.

"'Course, duffus. Whaadya take me for? Stupid?" Joey glared at his so called friend.

Tristan just shrugged smugly and looked up. "You said it not me..."

Joey fumed, and his hands twitched with the restraint of holding back a punch. "Watch it Tristan..." He warned. Yugi interrupted, wearing a huge smile.

"Joey! You're here... I was starting to get worried!"

"Course I'm here," Joey said proudly. He grabbed a bun off of Tristan's plate and started to chew. "Have I ever missed a class?"

"I'm not even gonna say anything..." Tristan said to himself as he moved his tray protectively away from Joey.

"Well... why were you late?" Yugi asked, curious. He sat down beside his best friend.

"Stupid alarm didn't go off..." Joey narrowed his eyes at his watch. It was still broken; he just wore it out of habit.

"Hey! Joey, that's exactly what happened to me!" Yugi spoke with great interest. Maybe Yami had been right...

"Hmm... that _is _Strange..." Ryou decided to comment. He had a finger to his lips in thought.

"Yeah..." Tea agreed, neatly putting her tray down. "What time did yours go off, Joey?" She asked. Joey looked down at his watch.

"Ahh... 3.21 am."

"Now _that's_ freaky." Duke commented. "What are the chances...?"

"What? Did the same thing happen to you, Yug?" Joey asked curiously.

"Yeah... 3.21 am..."

"Maybe it was an electrical spike. You know... they send out electrical waves through the air, and they mess up everything... it must of happened at that exact time." Tea suggested.

The others looked intrigued with the coincidence, but Joey just shrugged it off.

"Yeah, well... all I know is I got a major headache. Was it jus' me or did anyone else have a really bad night?" Joey asked casually as he layed down on the grass, resting his head on his folded arms beneath him. When he didn't receive an answer, he looked up to see five raised eyebrows. Confused, Joey asked "What?"

Tristan shook his head at the blonde. "You're definitely one in a million, Joe." Joey was unsure whether that was meant as an insult or compliment. The bell rang, and the six of them stood up. Joey sighed.

"History next. Why'd I even bother to come?"

"Because you have class with _me_ now... and you know you can't refuse _that_..."

"Shuddup Tristan," Joey said, irritated as Tristan laughed. His head hurt too much for the brunette's teasing.

True, both Joey and Tristan had history together, along with the rest of the group. This was the only class they had all together, so normally, they were able to make some fun out of it. The crazy teacher didn't help, although her intentions were usually otherwise. Unfortunately, trying to make _history_ fun just wasn't an option with today's generation.

* * *

Seto Kaiba was the first to enter the class room. That didn't surprise the young CEO. He took his familiar seat in the back row corner and pulled out his laptop to fill the time. May as well check how his stocks were doing... although he could already guess. He was about to log into his network when his cell went off.

"Kaiba." He answered gruffly after he flipped open his phone. He turned away to face the side for a bit of privacy when he saw that the door was opening.

"_Hi Seto..."_

"Mokuba?" He asked, surprised his younger brother would call. He was supposed to be in school at this time. "Is everything alright?"

"_Ahh... well... My teacher kinda needs to talk to you..."_

Kaiba sighed.

* * *

Joey was laughing at Tristan when the group walked into the history room. They had turned up a little earlier than usual, but Ryou had insisted, knowing that today's was going to be an extraordinary lesson. The other's hadn't taken their teacher's warning seriously, though, but humoured the white-haired teen anyway.

Joey was the first to enter, and instantly stopped his laughing when he saw that Kaiba was already there... and on the phone. He rolled his eyes as he walked towards his usual seat. Yugi was hushing the others out of politeness, seeing that Kaiba was talking, as they followed Joey inside.

'_Probably firing some employees...' _Joey thought sarcastically, as he obeyed Yugi's request to stay quiet for Kaiba. However, once he heard the teen CEO speak his brother's name, Joey's interest was piped. His friends were talking silently to each other, and Joey leaned forward as if to listen as well, but he instead payed attention to the conversation the CEO was having with his young brother.

"...What do you _mean_ you accidentally yelled at the teacher? Mokuba, I told you to let me handle those things..."

Joey rolled his eyes again, but continued to eavesdrop. The brunette was talking in hushed tones, not wanting to draw attention to himself.

"She what...? ...fine, put her on. Yes, this is Seto Kaiba..." Joey thought Kaiba sounded angry when he was talking to Mokuba... but now he sounded... deadly. The difference was almost... scary. "Would you mind telling me what you said that was so stupid Mokuba felt the need to object?"

Again, Joey fought the urge to roll his eyes. The rest of the conversation drowned out as more students filled the room, chatting animatedly. The supposedly bright day still hadn't worn off, it seemed. He didn't understand why everyone kept saying how well the night had gone... although, with nightmares like his, it was probably a little harder to tell.

'_Hang on...'_ Joey's eyes widened without him realizing as he recalled his earlier dream. Something was familiar about the dream... was he remembering something?

"...don't think you understand who I am, lady..." Joey vaguely heard the conversation Kaiba was carrying out.

'..._Kaiba! He... somethin' about Kaiba... Was he in my dream...?'_

"Joe... hey, Joey!" Tristan was now yelling, waving a hand in front of the blonde's face.

"Wha..? Ah.. What?" Joey asked defensively, feeling his cheeks redden with embarrassment as he was pulled back to reality.

"I asked you a question... you zoned out there for a bit, is everything okay?" Tristan asked with a raised eyebrow. Five heads were again looking at him.

"Ahh... yeah, sure. Fine... I was kinda jus rememberin' a dream I had, is all."

"Must have been a scary dream... you looked a little freaked..." Yugi added with a hint of concern. Joey, unsure how to respond, just laughed and put his hand behind his head. He could imagine how stupid he looked.

Just then, the History teacher walked in, saving Joey from his dilemma. The class quieted and watched her with anticipation as she put down her things and addressed the class.

"Good to see you all again, class... hope you had a good weekend. Now let's get down to business. Today we're going to start a project that I think you'll all enjoy."

Almost everyone in the class groaned at this. The history teacher's pasts ideas of 'fun' involved geography maps and dress-ups of old infamous sea-travellers. Ryou, on the other hand, had an excited gleam in his eye. Joey felt like punching him on the arm.

The teacher continued, oblivious to the class's negative response.

"I know how you young ones dislike the criteria for 'historical trademarks in local settings'; so I have taken the initiative to choose a site that I think you all will be interested in. It will be a fun learning experience!" More groans. This time, the teacher took note of them. "Now, now, kids... hear me out at least! I know you haven't thought very highly of my ideas in the past, but I think you might be very intrigued by this. Now... seeing as how you are all pretty much failing, I decided to make this project worth 70 percent of the final score for this unit. Do this well and you'll get a great score for the Unit!" She beamed, and then suddenly frowned. "Don't do this, you fail."

Now this grabbed everyone's attention. All eyes were wide and looking down at her in disbelief.

"Ahh... can you even do that...?" A girl somewhere in the front began to ask sceptically. But this history teacher had always been a bit of a nut.

"Of course I can! Oh, please stop looking at me like that. These will be easy marks, that's why I decided to do this. You'll see."

The teacher gave some time for the students to chat amongst themselves. Many were confused, and some where outraged. Joey, however, didn't mind. He knew he was failing and he doubted that whatever 'outrageous' idea this teacher had this time would change that. Instead, he decided again to think about his dream.

While Yugi talked enthusiastically with Ryou – gesticulating madly, might he add – Joey cautiously glanced at Kaiba from the corner of his eye. The broody CEO was in the corner, not speaking but just looking peeved. Well... okay, _more_ peeved than usual. He had obviously finished his conversation with Mokuba's teacher and had heard what the History teacher had to say. Joey frowned. Now that he thought about it... he was sure Kaiba had a part in his strange dream. He still couldn't remember what happened, but he just... _knew_ it.

'_Well, that's not surprisin'...'_ Joey thought sarcastically, _'No wonder I'm havin' nightmares... even when I'm asleep he's torturin' me...'_

But Joey thought those words with a heavy heart. He didn't believe them, even though they sounded logical to him. He – strangely enough – didn't think Kaiba was the bad guy in his dream.

His thoughts fleeting, Joey decided to take one last look at the tall brunette. Seeing his friends were still busy discussing, he thought it safe to turn his head and look up at the CEO. But as soon as his honey coloured eyes reached its destination, two dark ones were staring right back. Joey gulped, realizing the focus of his attention was looking straight back at him, and quickly turned back away. He sat straight in his chair, facing the front and entwining his hands in front of him on the desk as he sweat-dropped. He could feel the dark eyes burning into him from behind... and the speculation made him too nervous to make a move.

'_Man... that was weird...'_

"Class! Come on now, quiet down!" The history teacher called out to the class. All eyes went back to her. She sighed with a sort of relief, putting her hands on her hips. Tentatively, Ryou raised his hand.

"Yes... what is it?" the teacher asked, pointing to the white-haired teen.

"Uh... exactly what _is _the project, Mrs Macarthur?"

"Oh, yes! I was just about to explain!" she stated excitedly. "Listen up, class, I'm sure you're gonna like what I have to say..."

"She keeps saying that!" Tristan irately whispered over Yugi to Joey, who rolled in eyes in agreement.

"... so get ready. How many of you have heard of the old 'Golden Spirit' Hotel in Fare Vrone City?" There were just a few unsure nods among the class. "Well, The Golden Spirit Hotel was founded many years ago..." The teacher now added a hint of eeriness to her voice as she continued – supposedly trying to sound engaging. "Approximately 200 years ago, and was very popular during it's time. It's -" She stopped mid-sentence as a thought popped into her head; "Well... it's not a hotel _anymore_, actually... just a tourist attraction – but that's not the point. Anyway. This hotel is actually a very famous trade-mark. It may not be revolutionary in itself, but it did cause quite a bit of trouble in it's time. Many – now quite well-known – philosophers, explorers and archaeologists had passed by and stayed at the Golden Spirit Hotel... it was famous for all the celebrities it attracted, and had taken part in many great events of our past. But it also caused much controversy. Much of the upper class would go to the Hotel... whether as sceptics or to be part of a great mystery. But one thing is certain about the old hotel... no one ever came out the same..."

By now, all students were hanging on the teacher's every words – with the exception of Seto Kaiba, of course - and she purposely lowered her voice and leaned in, escalating the effect she was having on her students.

"This is what they call the Curse of the Golden Spirit... no one who ever stayed overnight in this hotel ever came out the same. No one would understand why... or how... but once the customers left the elegant resort, they would never have the same look in their eyes again. Whether it was because they saw something... experienced something... or, well, because they disappeared..." she frowned at her thought, but shook it off, "either way, no one would ever speak a word of what happened during their stay."

Taking in a deep breath, the proud history teacher took a step back to properly observe her damage. Students had leaned in as close to the front as possible, and some jaws were dropped. Several people even looked scared. "Now, I won't say anymore... why spoil all of the fun? That's up to _your_ research. Any questions?" She waited for someone to respond.

The students seemed to come back to themselves at the change in atmosphere, and looked around nervously. Yugi was the first to speak.

"We're... We're researching a... a _haunted _hotel?" he asked fearfully, almost squeaking his words.

"That's right! I thought this would make you happy!"

Yugi looked at his friends nervously. Even Ryou looked a little nervous. But the rest of the students began chatting excitedly.

"Uh... Miss Macarthur?" Ryou asked, raising his hand.

"Yes, what is it?" She frowned, pointing to Ryou.

"Uh... well, how does a hau... a _haunted _hotel relate to the 'historical trademarks in local settings' criteria? Doesn't it have to involve individual influences in local History?" The rest of the class stopped to listen to the teacher's answer.

The teacher nodded, not seeming deterred at all. "That's the beauty of this hotel, my boy. Like I said, many famous philosophers and explorers had passed by, and after staying at that hotel, had come up with some of the most influential theorems of our time. Many believed whatever happened in that hotel affected their thoughts enough to put them on such a successful path. They were the lucky ones though... most who stayed at that hotel ended up dead or in the mad house."

The class stared wide eyed at the teacher, who spoke very casually for such a topic.

"Anyway, I've decided there will be two parts to this project. The class will be paired off, and together you will work on the two assessments I have separated the criteria into. The first is based on a famous historical figure who had stayed at the Golden Spirit hotel. The second is about the hotel itself, and its modern influence on our society after its foundation and participation in strong historical events. I'll be randomly choosing pairs, no exceptions. I'm serious about this... a significant amount of marks will be graded according to how well you work in a collaboration, so I want to see evidence of discussions and group research. Here are the guidelines you will need to follow..." She began handing each student a photocopied piece of paper with instructions on it, "And I'll call out your pairings in just a minute."

Joey rolled his eyes at the clipart ghost that was on the end of the page, and looked at Yugi when he heard a soft whine.

"Joey, I don't want to research a haunted hotel..." the small teen looked up to his friend with dependant eyes. Joey smiled reassuringly at him.

"Hey, don' worry Yug. This might even be cool. I mean, why should you be afraid of a haunted old run-down buildin'? You kinda have ya own haunted puzzle there." Joey pointed to the millennium puzzle hanging around Yugi's neck. The small teen instantly brightened at his best friend's words.

"Hey! You're right!" he said brightly.

"When am I not?" Joey narrowed his eyes when he heard Tristan snort from his seat, but quietened down when the teacher began reading out the pairs.

"Okay, class... I'm just going to be picking out names from a box that I prepared earlier, so... Kyle Mouyo... you will be with Britney Zammit..." Tristan looked at Joey while the teacher called out names.

"So Joey... How's Serenity...?"

The side of Joey's mouth twitched at the mention of his little sister, and he crossed his arms, making sure to _not_ look at Tristan. "...You'd know better than I would... bastard..." Joey whispered the last part to himself. Tristan caught it though...

"Hey!" he said defensively, "Can I help it if she happens to like spending more time with me than you?" The serious way Tristan spoke made Joey turn to face him and growl...

"Why I oughtta...!" he began to reach for the smug looking brunette, but quieted when the teacher called out Yugi's name...

"Yugi Motou... will be with... Ryou Bakura..."

Ryou looked to Yugi with an excited grin, who returned it just as enthusiastically.

"Hey, this is great, Ryou! We'll do great together!" Yugi spoke enthusiastically, to an eagerly agreeing Ryou.

"Joey Wheeler... will be teamed with..." Joey looked at the teacher with interest, almost feeling sorry for whoever he had to be partnered with. He was a guaranteed F no matter _who_ he was teamed with... "Seto Kaiba..."

Joey froze. The five heads of his friends turned to look at the blonde expectantly.

Joey twitched but didn't move.

"Oh! I forgot to mention, class... In two weeks time, we will be going on an excursion to the Golden Spirit Hotel!"

* * *

**TBC**


	4. The Conflictation

**4. The Conflictation **

Joey told his friend's he'd meet up with them, and stayed behind to talk to the teacher. Everyone had almost all left when he interrupted the flaky history teacher from gathering her things.

"Miss Macarthur?" Joey spoke resolutely.

"Yes? ...What is it?" She asked, looking confused as the blonde teen addressed her.

"I can't be paired up with _Kaiba_!" He said bluntly, crossing his arms determinedly. Kaiba, typically being the last to leave a classroom, caught his name and stopped before he completely left the room. He looked over to the teen and teacher.

Joey was obstinate about his decision, and tried to look as resolute as possible while he stood in front of her. It wasn't very hard, considering the history teacher was about a couple of feet shorter than him. The history teacher, still confused, looked over to where Kaiba was standing and furrowed her brow.

"Well, why not?" She asked, still just as bewildered.

"What...??" Joey looked at her in shock.

'_Is she serious?!'_

"You gotta be kiddin'! He's a total as... uh, he's mean." Joey screamed at her in disbelief. The teacher frowned at his almost-slip, but didn't comment.

"I don't see a problem with Mr. Kaiba." She concluded, looking once more at the tall CEO at the doorway. "The pairings were random. No exceptions." The teacher looked at Joey with what Joey guessed was her interpretation of authority, before narrowing her large eyes while observing the young man in front of her.

"Mr. Wheeler..." She began, "Are you not failing my history class?"

"Ah... well..." Joey laughed nervously, slouching a little now.

"Oh my, you poor boy. You have not yet come to understand the significance of learning the great aspects of History!" Joey sweat-dropped, and it was all he could do to not roll his eyes.

"Ah... well..."

"But history is so important! Listen, young man... all you have to do is think of how the great men and women of history have affected our lives today. Then you will hold appreciation for history! This assignment is just what you need! You and Mr. Kaiba will make a great team, just think of the wonders of the past! Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm meeting with Mr. Wheat to discuss the criteria for next semester. Good afternoon."

And with those strange words, the history teacher made her way to the exit, muttering a similar curtesy to Kaiba as she left. Joey sighed.

"Great..."

"If I didn't know what _great grades_ you were earning, Wheeler, I would have just thought it was the research you're afraid of doing."

Joey fumed at the CEO's sarcasm, despising with all his soul the smug look that Kaiba was wearing. _'Just great. He had ta hear that... now he's gonna find some way to use it against me and make my life hell...'_

"I ain't afraid of no research, Kaiba. Jus' the sight of _your_ face when I havta work with ya." Joey backfired. He crossed his arms while looking at the tall brunette, not wanting to make a move for the door since a certain prick was in its way. Kaiba raised an eyebrow.

"Well, don't worry, that won't be happening. You'll be sent your half of the project by the end of the week. And don't concern yourself, no one will suspect you of cheating... I'll make sure the vocabulary used on your half is... kept to a minimum."

With that said, Kaiba turned around dramatically to leave, his long coat swaying behind him. Only Kaiba was able to get away with not being in school uniform.

"Hey, wait!" Insulted, Joey yelled at Kaiba. Kaiba froze, but only looked over his shoulder to Joey.

"What is it, mutt?" He asked, irritated. The blonde teen growled at the comment, but decided to let it go.

"I don' need _you_ doin' my work! I can do it jus' fine!" He spat at the now annoyed looking brunette.

Kaiba now fully turned to face Joey and sighed with exasperation. He was afraid this might happen. "Look, _Wheeler_," Kaiba narrowed his eyes, speaking quickly and seriously. He was wasting too much time on the dumb blond. "Just swallow your pride and let me handle the work. At least this way you're guaranteed a passing grade..."

"Don' talk to me 'bout swallowin' pride!" Joey yelled defensively, "This comin' from the _great_ _Kaiba_ who's too afraid to even work with another human bein'!" Joey was just making generalisations, but he wanted to piss off the stubborn CEO. He had been offended by the other teen's words, and so he just wanted to bite back. Obviously, it worked, because Kaiba narrowed his eyes into dangerous slits, lowering his head slightly – giving him a eerie shadow over his face – before slowly marching up to the blonde with a deadly stride.

Venom was practically pouring off of the guy.

Joey twitched nervously, not realizing what he had said was so insulting that it would actually affect the CEO, who normally brushed aside his comments. He sweat-dropped and took a step back as the taller teen approached him, hitting the teacher's desk that was behind him. Kaiba didn't stop when he was directly in front of him, forcing himself right into Joey's personal space, not even stopping there and making the blonde lean back against the table until they were directly face to face... the taller teen practically on top of the shorter.

Joey's eyes were wide as they looked into the dark slitted ones above him. This was extremely awkward for the blond, and it wasn't only the position... he could feel the heat radiating off the body above his; could feel the warm breath brush his skin, the caress of the jacket that fell loosely around the brunette as it rubbed against his torso... they were too close...

Kaiba's lips were almost brushing against his own...

'_WHY does this moment feel so weird...?'_

"...NEVER call me afraid again, mutt... Never."

Joey was transfixed by the deadly eyes of the taller teen. The deadly words made a shiver run through his body, but he couldn't tear his own wide eyes away. When Kaiba finally turned swiftly to efficiently walk away, Joey was still bent backwards over the desk, supporting himself only by his arms behind him. Before Kaiba completely exited, he turned back one last time, and, speaking superiorly, said "Come to the mansion tonight. Five o'clock _sharp_."

He had watched as the CEO walked out of the room with an authoritative stride, and was now staring stupidly at the empty doorway.

Was his pulse beating so fast because the intimidating CEO had... scared... him?

...Or was it something else?

* * *

Joey was greatly disturbed by what happened earlier. He was currently ignoring his friends as they ate at the Pizza Palace; his mind stuck on the tall, dark CEO who had cornered him before. The triple-toped cheese-crust pizza with extra cheese, peperoni and prawns was absent-mindedly being pushed around on its plate, going cold and greasy as time continued on without it being eaten.

Joey looked at his mushy, triple-layered, half-eaten pizza with apparent interest. But his mind was not on his pizza. When his heart began racing earlier when Kaiba was so close... it must have been because he was scared...

'_NOT scared... jus' intimidated...' _Joey told himself. He didn't get scared... the only reason he had gotten so nervous in the first place was because of his dream. He had remembered Kaiba being in his nightmare somehow... and it subconsciously made him a little freaked of the tall brunette. It was only logical. Besides, Joey refused to believe that feeling that made his body shiver could have been anything else...

"...Hello! Earth to Joey!"

Joey looked up from his very interesting piece of pizza when a hand suddenly waved in front of his face. All his friends around him were looking at him... and Tea, with an amused smile, laughed.

"Hey, Joey... what's going on inside that big head of yours?"

Joey growled at her, "Hey! Watch who's head your callin' big!" He yelled at the laughing girl.

"What's wrong, Joey? You've been zoning out all day," Yugi asked, tilting his head as he observed the blond.

"Yeah," Tristan agreed, crossing his arms, "It's surprising you're even _capable_ of so much thinking... let alone not finishing a pizza in more than one gulp..."

Joey just laughed bitterly at this. "Yeah, well... at least _I'm _not paired with a certain big-mouthed nut." He said smugly, smiling evilly at the now fuming brunette.

Tristan had been paired with Rebecca Cowen. A particular girl many tried to avoid. She was loud, and apparently _loved_ to talk about herself – judging from all the history lessons they shared with her. She was pretty... but nothing strong enough to drown out her annoying personality. The girl was so excited when she was paired with Tristan, she actually got out of her seat to hug him. Many now guessed the girl had a crush on the unsuspecting brunette.

"I'm sure Serenity's gonna love hearin' 'bout Rebecca's new _love_ interest..." Joey continued to taunt, pointing teasingly at the other teen.

Tristan growled, but refrained from making any childish actions. Instead, he just smirked at Joey.

"I actually think I got off quite well compared to some other pairings... like, say... YOU and KAIBA!"

Joey sat shocked for a second, being hit unexpectedly by that remark. All the others looked at Joey nervously, waiting for him to start yelling. But Joey just sat.

"Ahh... it's probably not _that_ bad Joey..." Ryou tried to kindly comment, "...well... at least this way you're guaranteed a passing grade..."

It was meant as a reassuring comment, but Joey stood up with a scowl at Ryou's words.

"Why does everyone keep _sayin'_ that??" He demanded, irritated. The five friends were looking up at him with wide eyes. Joey just sighed, slumping his shoulders in defeat. "Whatever."

The blonde looked over to the Palace's clock, seeing that it was almost quarter to five.

"Man... I gotta go. I'll see ya guys tomorrow."

And with that, Joey left, leaving five bewildered friends and a half-eaten pizza.

"What's up with him?" Tristan asked with a raised eyebrow.

* * *

Yugi smiled at his counter part when he entered the room, seeing the elder on top of his bed, sorting through his deck. He discarded his backpack by his door, while shutting it after he entered.

"Hi," the small teen smiled as Yami looked up, his look of concentration changing into a warm smile.

"Was your day alright?" Yami asked as he watched the small teen shed his jacket and undo some buttons on his shirt. Yugi didn't miss the slight hint of concern in the other's voice, causing him to stop his actions to observe the pharaoh closely.

"It was great," Yugi reassured, moving to sit on top of his bed. Yami gently pushed aside his deck, and pulled the small teen to him, embracing him and pressing their bodies together tightly. Yugi didn't resist in the slightest, and hugged his lover back, wrapping his arms around his neck and leaning his head on the other's strong shoulder. Sensing the other's anxiety, Yugi squeezed his arms comfortingly.

"I'm fine, Yami, don't worry so much. Nothing happened." Yugi whispered to his lover from his shoulder, reassuring the concern he felt the other held. Yami relaxed, trusting his young lover's words completely, and kissed the teen's shoulder beneath him. He knew that he'd instantly know if anything serious happened through their connection, but for some unknown reason, Yami needed the reassurance personally and from the voice of his young love to believe it.

"I'm sorry for worrying..." Yami began to apologize, but Yugi, still not moving from their embrace, interrupted him before he could go any further.

"Don't be sorry, Yami. I don't mind."

Yami smiled a small, secret smile, before pulling back to look Yugi in the face.

"And everyone else? Are they alright?" he asked, still adamant about his earlier feeling.

"Everyone's fine." Yugi reassured with a loving smile. "Joey was late, but that's just because his clock stopped, like ours."

Yami frowned at this, "His clock stopped as well? That's quite coincidental, wouldn't you agree?"

Yugi moved off of Yami and the bed, continuing to remove his school uniform. "Yeah," he spoke casually now, "But what's even stranger is that his stoped at the exact same time ours did. 3.21 am..." The teen had changed into his casual shirt and was now unbuttoning his school pants. Yami frowned deeply at those words, and stood up from his sitting position on Yugi's bed.

"3.21 am?"

"Yeah... Tea thinks it might have been caused by an electrical wave or something..." he spoke absent-mindedly as he changed his pants.

Yami walked over to the window again, and looked out into the city's view. The day was still bright; the weather was still perfect, and not a thing seemed out of place. The pharaoh narrowed his eyes. He was sure that it wasn't an electrical wave that he felt during the night...

* * *

**TBC**


	5. The Beginning

**

* * *

5. The Beginning**

"Don't touch anything..." came the cold voice from behind Joey. The blond tensed, his hand frozen in mid-air, reaching out to a golden statue sitting against the wall. He hadn't even heard the other teen come into the room.

Calmly moving his arm so it hung back at his side, Joey turned around to face the familiar brunette. He kept a straight face, and even managed to raise his eyebrow expectantly at the taller. He needed to keep his cool around Kaiba... he didn't want to let the already _too_ self-centred CEO believe he intimidated the blond. Especially after their little encounter earlier.

"So are we gonna get started, or what?" Joey asked, and mentally commended himself for managing to sound annoyed. In actual fact, he wasn't really annoyed... more like, completely freaked. He hated the tall CEO before him... well... _despised_ him is a better word. He _despised_ the fact that they were going to have to work together; he _despised_ the big, fancy house that the other lived in... he just _despised _everything about the taller, more successful, richer, sexier teen...

'_Wait... sexier...??'_

Kaiba just stood, arms crossed and expression passive as he held the other's gaze. Joey continued to glare, but became a little nervous when the other didn't make a move. Kaiba just continued to look into Joey's eyes... the blond, in which, was getting more than a little unsettled by it. He coughed nervously and looked away awkwardly, breaking not only the silence, but also the eye contact.

He looked back up just in time to see Kaiba looking a little startled, as if he was coming back to himself. But the blond didn't have much time to ponder that when Kaiba suddenly turned, easily moulding into his cold, authoritative exterior.

"The butler brought you to the wrong room. We'll go up to my study, follow me." Kaiba walked swiftly out of the room and into the hall, heading up to the large stairs that would lead him to his third floor study.

The brunette closed his eyes and didn't care to check if the mutt was keeping up with him as he flew up the familiar staircase, feeling his head begin to ache.

'_It's because of that mutt...'_ the CEO thought despisingly. _'even his presence gives me a headache...'_

But even Kaiba's own thoughts couldn't convince him. It wasn't the presence of the other that brought on this headache... more like the conflicting emotions that came with said presence. He couldn't deny what had happened earlier... he had tunned out when he was staring into the mutt's eyes... it had scared him to admit it, but he had gotten lost in those big, brown puppy-dog orbs...

'_That's it!' _Kaiba thought with conviction, opening his eyes as he entered his study. _'It's just an attraction, it's completely normal. I am a teenager after all...'_

Kaiba leaned against his desk, and smirked when the mutt entered the room a few minutes later. He had an awed expression as he entered, looking around the kingdom that was the CEO's house; although quickly hid it when he noticed Kaiba's smirk.

"So can we get started now?" asked the blond as he crossed his arms, feigning boredom.

'_So if it's just a measly little hormone-based attraction,' _Kaiba thought resolutely, _'all I have to do is deal with the problem face on... that will fix things...'_

Joey frowned when he noticed the strange smirk Kaiba was looking at him with.

* * *

"It's so strange..." The short teen spoke aloud in thought.

"What's so strange?" Yami asked his little lover, smiling at the curious eyes staring into the bright sky and fluffy clouds above. The two were seated on a dully-coloured bench in the park. It was getting late, almost six in the evening, but the day was still bright and full of potential. Kids were yelling and laughing as they played with each other on the grass, and couples had taken to walking their dogs together along the path of the park. The trees swayed slightly with the warm breeze, and families were picnicking near the ponds. The day was still prosperous, bright and beautiful.

"...Why you've had such a bad feeling on such a beautiful day." Yugi replied with a small sigh, watching a bunch of children playing soccer a few yards ahead of them.

Yami smiled at his lover's innocence, but it was a sad smile. Hugging the teen close to him, Yami responded by leaning his chin on top of the spiky head below his. His Yugi was strong, courageous and loyal, but he was also innocent and pure. And such attributes unfortunately came attached with a naivety. Not that Yami wanted the youth any other way... the young teen was perfect just the way he was. But he didn't understand that with great good, came great evil. And this day was as good as they've ever had...

Yugi didn't inquire any further, and the two just sat together quietly, looking on at the people in the park and content to just be holding each other.

A bit of time passed before Yugi suddenly sat up, pulling away from Yami as he stood.

"Ryou! Hey!" He yelled to a path to the side of them, seeing that his friend with his own counterpart were walking along it. Ryou, hearing Yugi's call, turned to the voice and smiled upon seeing his friend. Bakura turned also, but frowned with exasperation when he saw the pharaoh and his little brat.

"Let's keep walking," Bakura told his love, but Ryou ignored him, already heading off to where his two friends sat.

"Yugi! Hi Yami, how are you?" Ryou asked with his soft, angelic voice when he approached the two. Yami, who was still sitting, smiled up at the light-haired teen.

"Fine. Yourself?" Yami asked, standing up for respect.

"I'm great. It's such a beautiful day, I don't know _why_ Bakura keeps complaining..."

"I heard that." Bakura frowned darkly as he reached Ryou and the teen's friends.

"Hi Bakura, how are you?" Yugi asked brightly with a smile. Yami narrowed his eyes at the tomb robber.

"Hn..." Was the stubborn spirit's reply. He smirked when he saw Yami's glare. "And how is the _great_ pharaoh today?" He spoke mockingly. Ryou rolled his eyes.

"Don't worry about him, Yami, he's just bitter." The light-haired teen informed. Bakura frowned at his lover's words.

"So what are you guys doing out here?" Yugi asked his friend enthusiastically.

"I just wanted to go for a walk before it got dark... it's such a nice day. I was going to go alone, but Bakura insisted on coming." He said, smiling at his love who just huffed indignantly, crossing his arms and looking away.

"He's still paranoid about the day?" Yugi asked Bakura knowingly, the said boy smiling in reply. But Yami frowned and spun to Yugi at hearing this.

"What?" He demanded the question at Yugi. Yugi looked surprised at his Yami's sudden outburst. "You mean you knew another spirit had sensed it as well and you didn't tell me?" Yami's voice held anger to it, and Yugi frowned at the sound, stepping back a little from the pharaoh.

"Uhh... I didn't think it was important..." Yugi shrugged. He could see Ryou's wide eyes on the two of them, and Bakura's interested glare.

Yami turned to look at the other spirit, who looked at him in return.

They shared a knowing look.

"You too?" The tomb robber asked.

"Yeah..." Yami replied.

No movements were made as the two continued to stare at each other. A sudden wind blew around them, making their hair sway and Yugi shiver. That was the first strong wind of the day.

"Let's go," Bakura said to his lover, although not moving and still looking at the pharaoh.

"Yeah..." Yami told Yugi, who was still behind him.

Both teens could feel the tension in the air, and decided it best not to argue.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Ryou," Yugi told his friend, and waited for him to reply before turning and quickly walking the direction home. Yami, noticing Yugi's quick departure, frowned one last time at the other spirit before turning and quickly following the youth.

"...That was strange..." Ryou commented, watching his friends' retreating backs as he stepped close to his dark.

"...Yeah." Bakura agreed.

* * *

Joey's frown deepened as Kaiba stood from his leaning position, and started to slowly approach him. His head was lowered, just like it had been when he had approached him in history class earlier, giving him an intimidating shadow... an almost predatory look about him. Joey starred wide-eyed at the CEO, wondering what he had said this time, as the brunette got closer... closer...

'_Okay... TOO close again...'_

The CEO had once again invaded the blond's personal space, and was still advancing, forcing Joey to stumble backwards until he hit the wall behind him. Kaiba leaned down, so his face was directly level with the shorter teen's, moving so close that their noses were almost touching. Joey could only stare wide-eyed as the taller trapped him in his position against the wall, by leaning both hands on the wall either side of Joey's head. Joey shivered when Kaiba kicked the door shut beside them, not once taking his eyes off of the blond.

"Ah..." Joey began, but was cut off.

"Tell me, mutt... are you intimidated by me?" Kaiba's voice sounded dangerous. Or was it deadly? Or seductive...

Joey blinked. "...Wh-What?"

"Well?" Kaiba demanded firmly, almost growling now. He knew how to get his way... working the mutt would be easy...

Joey gulped at the stern tone of the other, seeing the fire in his eyes. He felt his hands begin to shake when Kaiba leaned forward even further, so their noses now _were_ touching. The shorter teen felt the hot breath of the taller softly caress his skin, and he was instantly reminded of earlier. So why was Kaiba doing this again? Was he... just playing with the blond's mind?

"Are you... _scared _of me?" Kaiba continued to growl, his unwavering gaze burning into Joey, who found he couldn't tear his own eyes away. The blond frowned however, when the CEO's words registered.

'_Geez... he gets off from other people's fear! I ain't gonna let this sicko get to me...' _Joey thought resolutely, trying to force his hands to stop shaking as he narrowed his eyes at him.

"No." Joey said bluntly. Kaiba raised an eyebrow.

"...I think you are..." He began, again in that dangerous tone...

"Well think again..." Joey replied, but he trailed off as he saw the smirk the other was wearing.

"Stop being so stubborn, mutt" Kaiba said before leaning in the rest of the way and pressing his lips to the boy's before him, loving that he was able to make the stubborn teen gasp – and not only because it gave him the opportunity to delve his tongue inside the warm mouth of the mutt.

* * *

"Yugi! Wait!" Yami called as he ran after the youth. Yugi had not stopped for him during the short journey home, and now was running up the stairs to the game shop without even looking behind him. Yami had almost reached the teen, just a split second before the bedroom door slammed shut in his face.

"Yugi! Yugi open the door..." Yami called sternly through the thick wooden layer, hoping his lover would relent. He waited, but the door didn't open.

"Yugi, please..." He tried again, pleading this time. No reply.

Yami sighed, closing his eyes as he leaned his forehead against the cold, hard door. He had messed up. The two of them very rarely fought... they understood and respected each other, and Yugi knew that Yami sometimes had difficulties adjusting to this world. Normally, the youth was very forgiving if the spirit had somehow stuffed-up, but Yami guessed he had crossed the teen's threshold of tolerance this time. But... what did this mean?

Yami sorrowfully turned and slid against the door, until he was sitting on the floor and leaning against the heavy wood. Resting the back of his head on the cold surface, Yami frowned. He loved Yugi... he needed him as much as he needed oxygen... what would happen if Yugi didn't want to be with him anymore?

'_I'd... I'd die...'_

Inside the room, Yugi sighed. Leaning against the door he had used to shut Yami out, the youth could only try and hold back the tears. Why was he being so emotional?

* * *

Joey wasn't able to get over his shock in time to stop the CEO from pushing his tongue inside his mouth. Was Seto Kaiba's tongue really in his mouth? And why did it feel so good? Shouldn't he be despising the insensitive CEO right now, instead on having his tongue jammed down his throat... His very wet, warm, soft tongue...

'_Oh GOD, screw it...'_

Giving in to his desires, Joey finally overcame his initial shock, and closed his eyes, widening his mouth so the CEO had greater access, and bringing his hands up to grab Kaiba's hair.

Kaiba smiled into the kiss, finally feeling the blond respond. He knew it... he had seen the looks he received from the teen in class, had noticed the starring... It all made sense now.

'_And once I get this over with, I won't be distracted by his eyes again...' _Kaiba thought menacingly, too busy with the other's mouth to comprehend how illogical that thought was.

* * *

Ryou leaned his head on his counterpart's shoulder as they strolled back to their apartment. It was getting darker now, and the wind was getting stronger, but Ryou didn't feel like rushing back home like Yugi and Yami had. He had seen that Yugi had been upset by the pharaoh's yelling, and felt guilty because of it. He somehow felt responsible.

"Hey, lets get icecream," Bakura suggested out of the blue as they passed a few Stores. Ryou blinked a few times before coming to a stop, lifting his head from the Spirit's shoulder to look at the other questioningly. The expression turned suspicious.

"What?" The teen questioned with narrow eyes.

Bakura frowned at the teen's questioning, before blinking himself, realizing what he had just said.

"Uh... I... I didn't mean that. I meant let's go home." He tried to walk away quickly, but Ryou grabbed his arms so the tomb robber was looking at him. The teen smiled.

"No you didn't..." Ryou spoke gleefully, "You wanted us to get icecream! Like couples do! You actually wanted us to spend time together!"

"No I didn't..." Bakura growled, crossing his arms.

"Wow Bakura! Maybe we're starting to rub off on you!" was Ryou's excited response.

"It's probably just the day..." The spirit dismissed, feigning apathy. He felt the wind getting stronger. "It's making everyone act strangely..."

* * *

Joey moaned loudly as Kaiba hurriedly and sloppily sucked and nibbed the blond's earlobe, moving his sloppy kisses down the smooth neck and throat. Joey shut his eyes tightly, throwing his head back to allow Kaiba more room for his ministrations. He just continued to hold and squeeze the hair of the taller, as Kaiba's own hands now roamed under the blond's shirt.

Joey arched his hips and groaned when Kaiba grabbed him through his pants, and he unconsciously began thrusting into the warm hand as it rubbed him. He was beyond thinking now, he just wanted Kaiba, and wanted him _now_. The necessity both teens felt urged them to move quickly. Their movements may have been sloppy and uncontrolled, but they were at least getting somewhere and that was the most important thing right now. Joey cried out as the pleasure began to overwhelm him, but opened his eyes when he felt a hand slap over his widened mouth. He looked with wide-eyes to Kaiba, who had stopped his ministrations to glare at him.

"Be quiet", he warned, narrowing his eyes for emphasis before removing his hand.

"...what?" Joey asked, confused.

"...Mokuba," Kaiba informed reluctantly, but didn't wait for a response as he claimed the mouth of the blond once again. Joey understood, and tried to suppress his moans as Kaiba's hands once again found Joey's chest. This time, though, He grabbed the blond's waist and moved him so he wasn't leaning against the wall anymore. Without breaking their kiss, Kaiba pushed Joey's jacket off of the slim shoulders, forcing Joey to temporarily remove his hands from Kaiba's hair and his lips from Kaiba's mouth. Before Joey could replace them, though, Kaiba also pushed up his white shirt, and pulled if off with the teen's help.

Kaiba Grabbed Joey's arms, holding them to the side as he pulled away from the teen, standing back to observe the slightly muscled torso before him. Joey, who was being held in place, blushed at the scrutiny, as well as the smirk the other was wearing. After his thorough inspection of Joey's body, Kaiba looked into his eyes. The boy was about a head shorter than him, and could probably fit perfectly in an embrace if he were to ever hug the mutt. But that wasn't going to happen now.

Kaiba quickly wrapped his arms around the blond to grab his behind and lift him so their faces met without the taller having to lean down. Joey gasped at the abrupt movement, but quickly caught on, surrendering himself to Kaiba's mouth as he wrapped his legs around the brunette's and his arms around his neck. They kissed hard and fast, the need quickly building within both of them, and acting quickly, Kaiba turned to move them both to his desk.

...It would have to be good enough.

Leaning forward so that Joey was now stretched out against the length of the desk, Kaiba quickly then lifted himself off the teen to efficiently remove his jacket and shirt. Joey took the opportunity to move aside the stationary pressing into his back.

Kaiba was quick to remove their pants, before once again pressing against the blond and ravishing his mouth and neck; Joey, in which, had dutifully spread his legs to allow the CEO better accommodation.

...The rest of the evening was sweaty and very, _very_ satisfying.

* * *

**TBC**

OoOoOo... now we're gettin sumwhere. Dun dun! Please review if u like :D


	6. The Desirable

A/N: umm, sorry this chap took longer to come out, but I had exams. and I screwed one up! X.X

Oh well, what can you do? Okay, things begin to get eerie in this chapter, its beginning to get better! Don't give up on it so soon! Thanx for all the reviews so far guys, keep it up! :D

* * *

**6. The desirable**

**-at another time-**

"Wow... I told you coming here was a good idea..." The young blond-haired man looked around in awe at the sparkling foyer of the famous hotel. "It is really something..."

"Yes... I must admit it is better than I had expected..." The taller brunette man stood closely behind the blonde, agreeing as he too looked around the gold-decorated room. It was quite stunning... everything from the elegant gold angel statues hanging from the walls to the giant chandelier in the centre of the 5-story high ceiling. The place was bustling with movement, as customers laughed and lounged on the royal red seating surrounding decorative water fountains and staff efficiently moved around without getting in anyone's way. There wasn't a customer in sight who didn't look a million dollars.

The blond excitedly turned around, trying hard to not grin stupidly at the brunette... He wasn't use to such elegant vacations. Instead, he settled for a suppressed smile as he looked up to his brunette friend, inconspicuously grabbing onto the other's hand as they looked into each other's eyes. He wanted to thank him for bringing him here... bringing him somewhere he'd never imagined he could ever go to – well, not with his current income, anyway. He stepped closer to the brunette, not taking his eyes of the other as their bodies touched.

The brunette almost shivered, as he looked into his lover's eyes...

A strong wind suddenly passed them from the constantly opening doors, and coming back to himself, the brunette pulled quickly away from the other. He saw that the doors were being closed again, before looking to the side just in time to see a kitchen staff member pass them... an expression of disgust upon his features as he looked away from the two men. Quickly, the brunette unravelled his fingers from the other's hand and stepped back, coughing a little. The blonde looked up at him with wide eyes, noticing too that they had almost been seen.

"Not now..." The brunette said casually, giving the shorter a quick smirk before looking away again. "Later. Why don't we go check in for now?"

The blonde smiled knowingly, and straightened his jacket. "Yes. Of course."

* * *

Kaiba frowned as he buttoned up his shirt, and ran his washed hands through his damp hair. He had been surprised at how good sex with Joey had felt, but now that he had gotten it over and done with, he was already trying to forget it ever happened. Now that his hormones were sated, he could move on without distraction. Kaiba turned to look at his desk clock – which had been knocked to the ground – to check the time. Almost seven.

Joey emerged shirtless and in the process of buttoning his pants from the study's connecting bathroom. He looked at ease and casual. Something Kaiba didn't approve of.

"Don't get too comfortable." Kaiba warned, reaching for his jacket.

Joey blinked at the CEO, but shrugged. He spotted his white shirt on the floor, and reached for it. "Hey, don' worry," Joey spoke sardonically, as he put on his shirt, "_I_ wasn't exactly the one that jumped ya the moment I walked in."

The blonde was still unclear about why Kaiba had done that in the first place... but figured the brunette regretted it, by his current attitude. The coldness radiating from the taller was making the blond made feel defensive.

Kaiba, who had finished brushing out the crinkles in his large jacket, turned to face Joey with a demanding, superior glare.

"No one finds out about this. So don't go telling those losers you call friends, got it?" He threatened in a low tone, his glare unwavering. He didn't want to diminish his reputation by people finding out about his little one-time mistake with a stupid mutt. Joey just rolled his eyes.

"As if I'd wanna pronounce _this_ to the world," he spoke sarcastically, with a snide expression. Kaiba sighed with irritation, closing his eyes and trying to not let the idiot's stupidity affect him.

"...That's _announce_! ...Moron..." he rubbed the bridge of his nose with his thumb and finger, looking like he was suffering a bad headache. Joey fumed at the CEO's correction, but decided it wasn't worth yelling over. He was in the house of the other, after all.

"Whatever," He reluctantly dismissed, crossing his arms and looking away.

"It's almost seven. You've got to leave now." Kaiba said bluntly, turning away from the blonde.

Joey gapped at him, "What? What about the project? That's why we're here after all..."

Kaiba interrupted him, not caring for reasoning. "I need to make sure Mokuba is alright for dinner." He said, briefly glaring at the blonde before busying himself by picking up various desk-items that had had been pushed to the floor.

"Don't you have butlers to do that?" Joey indicated the mess on the floor, "And to serve dinner and stuff?"

Kaiba frowned in increased irritation. "Not that's it's any of your business, Wheeler, but I'd prefer Mokuba to know how to take care of himself. As for the assignment... I suppose we're just going to have to do it tomorrow..." Kaiba smirked at the mutt, standing straight and crossing his arms, "Unless, of course, you've reconsidered my proposal. That's assuming you'd want to pass, though..."

Joey growled and fisted his hands, about to yell his comeback when Kaiba interrupted him, predicting his outburst.

"I didn't think so." Kaiba stated with subdued annoyance, raising a hand in front of the mutt to stop his eruption. Joey blinked. "Same time tomorrow. This room. Don't be late again." And with that, Kaiba turned and walked toward the door.

"Don't get lost on your way out," Kaiba dismissed the teen without turning his head, before he disappeared around the door's corner. Joey snarled.

"Jerk," He said quietly.

* * *

So dark...

Where... was he...?

* * *

Tristan frowned, as he drummed his fingers on the cafeteria table... the only noise penetrating the silence surrounding the table. They were all sitting together as usual for lunch... but there was something unsaid lingering in the atmosphere, and it was creating an irritating silence over the group.

Tristan looked around to the friends who seemed too lost in their own thoughts to speak. Yugi looked... different. A little lethargic... maybe even... upset? The brunette guessed it wasn't because the shorter was talking to Yami through their connection, from the lack of the concentrating expression he usually held when doing so. Of course, quite as a reverse, Joey had a look of strong concentration... or at least that's what Tristan thought it was. He looked like he was trying to understand something that didn't make sense... of course, that's nothing out of the ordinary for the blond, so Tristan guessed it was probably something personal. Even Ryou looked hesitant and twitchy. He'd always look like he was about to say something to Yugi, before deciding not to and once again going back to fidgeting.

'_This is depressing,'_ Tristan thought with a sigh. He looked down at his food. Macaroni and cheese suddenly didn't seem so great anymore.

"Ahh... guys?" Tea finally broke the silence. All eyes flew to her immediately. It was... unnerving. The girl laughed nervously and put her hand behind her head. "Ahh... did I... miss something?"

Yugi blinked and opened his mouth... but didn't respond. Instead he just looked back down at his food. Joey followed suit, and Ryou continued to look hesitant.

Tristan growled in irritation. He stood up, finally not being able to take anymore of the eerie silence, and slammed his palms down on the table. _'First thing's first,'_ he decided determinedly. He looked at the closet person to him. The blond.

"Joey! What the hell is wrong with you?" he demanded angrily.

Joey looked surprised that he had been addressed, and blinked several times as reality came back to him. "Ahh... waddaya mean? Heh heh..." He chuckled nervously, before frowning at Tristan. "And why are ya yelling?!"

Tristan sighed exasperatingly. The blond was obviously so oblivious he didn't even notice the silence. Tristan turned to the next person, deciding to forget about the blond. He realized half the cafeteria was watching him, and his friends sitting at the table had wide eyes, but the brunette was determined to figure this out.

"Ryou... why do you look so nervous?!" he shook his head with a confused frown.

Ryou, much like Joey, looked shocked that he was addressed. He stuttered a couple of times, before finally answering "I-I'm not nervous!" The teen sounded nervously defensive. "I'm just worried about Yugi!"

Tristan narrowed his eyes, refraining from asking the question. Instead, he turned to a shocked-looking Yugi and let out an irritated breath before asking "Yugi... What's wrong...?!"

Yugi blinked a couple of times, looking around at the expectant gazes from his friends, and licked his lips nervously before attempted to answer.

"Ahh... ah, nothing. I... ah..." The short teen's cheeks had turned red with the unwanted attention. The rest of the group seated at the table looked at him with exasperated scepticism. Yugi sighed in defeat, knowing he was a bad bluffer.

"Alright..." he said sadly, slumping slightly and looking down to his lap, "Yami... he... well, he yelled at me."

All the members of the table looked at one another, concern and confusion etched in their features. With the exception of Ryou, who watched his short friend with concern. And of course, Duke, who just raised an eyebrow Yugi.

"What...? Yugi, what happened?" Joey asked with concern.

The others watched, waiting for an explanation.

"I mean... Yami _does_ get a little loud sometimes..." Joey continued, shrugging in thought. Yugi shook his head.

"No, it wasn't like that... he... look, don't worry, it's nothing..." The small teen sighed and he got up from his seat, abandoning his food to get away from the group. Tristan pursed his lips, but didn't know what to say.

* * *

Joey watched with wide eyes as Yugi struggled to explain what he meant... but instead, just got up and left. Mentally kicking himself, the blond quickly got up himself, leaving his lunch to run after his best friend. He felt guilty... here was his best friend, going through a tough time and obviously needing someone to lean on or talk to, and all Joey was thinking about was how good Kaiba had looked without his shirt on... and of course, the weird dream he had had again that night.

"Hey, Yug, wait up!" He reached Yugi just as they had left through the exit into the hallway, and Joey flung his arm around the teen's shoulders. "Care ta inform me on this thing?"

Yugi stopped to look up at his best friend with sad eyes, not caring if the other would be able to read him like a book. Joey was his best friend, and he needed some support now.

"Joey... I didn't mean to not tell him, it just slipped my mind. He was so mean..." the small teen slumped a little, accepting his friend's support and leaning against him as they slowly walked down the empty hall.

"Hey, hey... start from the start, 'k bud? This ain't makin' a whole lot'a sense..." The two stopped when they reached their lockers, and Joey removed his arm as they both leaned opposite each other against the green cabinets of either side of the hall.

"Well..." Yugi started, his voice small and looking down at his feet, "We were in the park yesterday... and we passed Ryou and Bakura." Now he looked up at his best friend to see if he was following. Joey nodded.

"Yeah...?"

"Ryou told me Bakura didn't want to let him walk alone, so that's why he had come along. And I said 'he's still paranoid about the day, huh?'" Yugi imitated his earlier question.

Joey raised an eyebrow, "Yeah..."

"And then Yami turned around and yelled at me." Yugi had been gaining strength in his tone, but he spoke this last part feebly, looking down again.

Joey crossed his arms and frowned in thought, thinking over what Yugi had told him. "But... Why? What did he yell at ya for?"

Yugi sighed, looking up. "He yelled because I had forgotten to tell him that Ryou had mentioned something about Bakura having a weird feeling about the day, like Yami had."

Joey frowned. "...I don't remember him sayin' that..."

"You were late."

Joey blinked. "Oh yeah! So why was Yami upset that you forgot ta tell him 'bout Bakura?"

Yugi shrugged, letting out a despondent breath. "I don't know. I guess because he had such a strong bad feeling, maybe it means it's important if another spirit feels it, too? But how was I supposed to know that? And he didn't have to yell at me in front of Ryou..." Yugi blushed, pouting at the memory, "...that... was embarrassing."

"Ahhh, Yug..." Joey moved to stand beside his best friend, watching as some people began to pass them now that lunch was finishing. "It sounds ta me like Yami jus' overreacted. If he thinks this 'feelin' is as bad as ya said, then he was probably jus' bein' protective. Ya know? He cares 'bout ya, Yug, he wouldn't intentionally yell at ya like that..."

Yugi looked up with hopeful eyes to his best friend, and the blond turned from watching the passing people to smile encouragingly down at the shorter teen.

Seeing his best friend's reassuring smile, Yugi smiled too, before nodding with conviction. "You're right, Joey... I was overacting as well. I know Yami cares for me... I guess I just let the day get to me." The teen unconsciously held onto his puzzle around his neck.

The warning bell rang, and the two starting walking to their next class. Yugi, feeling a lot better thanks to their little talk, decided to change the subject. "So... did you talk to Mrs Macarthur about getting a new partner?" Yugi asked Joey as casual conversation, remembering how upset Joey had been over it.

Joey froze for a second – eyes wide and jaw clenched – like a deer caught in headlights. He quickly regained his composure, though, before Yugi noticed.

"Ahh... yeah..."

"And...?" Yugi questioned, raising his eyebrows expectantly at the taller teen.

"And, ah... she wouldn't let me swap." Joey averted his gaze, trying to look inconspicuously to the opposite side.

"That's too bad, Joey. But, hey... maybe it won't be too bad..."

"Yeah, maybe..." Joey replied, but absentmindedly as his thoughts once again lingered around the previous night... and a naked Kaiba.

* * *

Yugi smiled as he walked home. Thinking over the conversation he had had with Joey, the small teen couldn't help but agree with his friend, and feel stupid. Both he and Yami may have overreacted, but his counterpart _was_ only being protective. Yugi knew by now _just_ how protective the taller could be, so he shouldn't have gotten so upset. It seemed so illogical in retrospect.

'_That's right,'_ Yugi thought with conviction. _'As soon as I get home, the first thing I'll do is find Yami and apologize.'_

The youth's smile turned into a grin as he thought about his other half. He really did love him. Maybe, after all this was cleared up, they could do something together... maybe watch a movie, or go to the arcade. _'As long as we're together.'_

Yugi felt excitement bubble within himself as he entered the game shop. He said a quick "Hello" to his grandpa before rushing up the stairs, not even giving the old man time to reply. Passing his own room, the teen ran straight to Yami's bedroom door, and stopped in front of it.

The short teen stood before the large door, breathing in deeply as he gathered as much courage as he could. He knew he shouldn't feel nervous... this _was_ his Yami after all. His spirit. His second half, his friend, his _lover_. There was nothing to be worried about.

Deciding to act before his sudden confidence boost wore off, Yugi took a preparing breath before turning the handle to open the large door to Yami's room.

Swinging the door open... Yugi froze.

The teen's breath began to quicken at the sight before him. His hands began to shake, eyes widening and lips parting. The teen felt his mind go into a panic as he took in the deep red blood seeping into the white sheets. The red patch grew, spreading rapidly over the bed sheets and into the mattress, staining the pure-white bed. A single gasp was elicited from the teen's lips as he watched the limp, pale figure in the middle of the bed, dead eyes looking towards him... the source of the red blood's malevolent presence... _Yami_...

"Yugi?"

Yugi blinked. In an instant, the red was gone. There was no blood patch on the bed before him. The figure on the bed wasn't pale and limp, but reclined and holding a deck of cards. Bewildered, the young teen looked in the very much alive eyes of his counterpart... adding confusion to his shock and wracking his brain.

"Yugi... are you okay?" Yami, seeing the youth's distressed state, instantly put down his cards and got up from his bed to get to his lover. The teen had just opened his door, before freezing and looking shocked. It was disconcerting – to say the least – to see the younger's wide eyes and shaking form. But Yami stopped half way on the path to his counterpart, remembering their situation.

"What... what just happened?" Yugi spoke, looking up at Yami with desperate eyes. _'Was I... imagining that??'_

The taller saw the confusion plaster itself on Yugi's delicate face, and Yami couldn't take it anymore. Deciding to screw their earlier immature unsettlement, the pharaoh leaned down to scoop his young counterpart into a strong embrace. He felt the younger tense under his hold, but refused to let go. What was wrong with his love?

"Yugi, what happened?" Yami asked in a rush, not letting go of the youth even to look into his face. Something had happened. He could sense the distress exuding off the younger now that they were so close, and Yami was mentally berating himself for it. He should have been more focused, instead of brooding on their earlier troubles. He should have been there to protect his Yugi. What had happened?

Yugi swallowed hard, feeling the arms around his back; the strong torso pressed against his; the soft, spiky hair pressing into his cheek. This was real... it had to be, he could feel it. Yami was here, he wasn't... wasn't...

"...Yami!" The youth cried, pulling back enough to look into the face of his love. The relief Yugi suddenly felt was overwhelming, and he needed to see into the other's eyes. Just to reassure himself.

Yami gazed back, searching the other's eyes, his expression... trying to find any evidence or clues as to what had happened. "Yugi," The taller said desperately, although trying to sound gentle, "Tell me what happened." The pharaoh brushed back hair from the teen's eyes, before resting his palm gently on his cheek. "Tell me... I promise I will make the person who ever upset you pay." The words spoke themselves, brought out by the overwhelming protective serge he suddenly felt boiling in his blood. But he knew every word was true.

Yugi attempted a chuckle, which sounded more like a sob, as he came to his senses. The teen shook his head, dismissing the apparent illusion he saw, and leaned forward to rest on his lover's shoulder. Albeit still worried, Yami closed his eyes indulgingly at the embrace and rubbed the shorter's back, sensing calm begin to wash over the teen. The feeling helped calm down his own racing nerves.

"It's nothing..." Yugi said as he continued to hug his beloved. This was how it was meant to be, he and his Yami hugging, holding eachother, being _together_... not fighting. "I'm okay Yami, no one upset me. I just... thought I saw something..."

The teen spoke without moving from his position to look at Yami. The pharaoh was confused by Yugi's words, but decided it best not to pry right then. He sensed his love just needed his comfort, so held onto his other half.

"It's nothing..." Yugi repeated, so softly Yami barely heard it.

...Yugi bit his lip when he spoke his lie.

* * *

TBC.


	7. The Troubled

A/N: sorry about not putting a lime warning up on the chapter before last. Little lime warning here, too. I've had a few requests to just put in a lemon already (kaiba x Joey), but I'm a little hesitant coz of the R rating. But if you guys really want one, I'll put one in promise! just make sure to request it and don't forget to review! Thanks guys.

Oh yeah! And sorry this chap took longer to come out, MAJOR computer troubles XP

* * *

**7. The Troubled**

Joey boredly drummed his fingers on the desk, and idly looked to the desk clock. 5:43. He had been waiting here for almost an hour, and still no sign of Kaiba. He was beginning to get hungry. _'Eh, maybe I should jus' leave…'_ he thought with uncertainty. This wasn't getting him anywhere, anyway. He'd get more studying done at home. By himself.

Making his decision, Joey nodded to himself, before getting up from the desk seat and stretching. Just as he was about to reach for the study's door, it flew open. Joey blinked.

"Leaving so soon?" Kaiba spoke with sardonic disinterest. He pushed passed Joey, who was frowning at him, and placed his laptop down on the desk, in front of the seat.

"Whaddaya mean 'so soon'??" Joey demanded, fisting his hands. Kaiba made him so mad.

"Well, _you_ were late yesterday, Wheeler, so now we're even." The CEO didn't even look at the blond as he began opening some programs on his laptop. Joey, for his part, fumed.

"What…?! That was, like, 10 minutes! You're almost an _hour_ late!"

Kaiba clenched his teeth. The mutt's voice was beginning to annoy him. "_Look_," Kaiba said venomously, turning to look at the blond, "Not that I need to justify myself to a mutt like _you_, but obviously you've forgotten that I have a business to run. Some things are a little more important than getting a menial history assignment done." He spoke the last part with sarcasm, glaring at Joey. But the blond wasn't deterred by the brunette's glare, and just crossed his arms over his cheat, rolling his eyes.

"Not that we're gettin' anythin' done…" Joey commented the thought aloud, looking away in annoyance.

Kaiba sighed in irritation, bringing his fingers up to rub the bridge of his nose. First he had to deal with the screw-up those incompetent, moronic excuses for employees managed at Kaiba Corp, now this. A stupid mutt determined to work on a school project. At least the mutt hadn't told anyone about what they did last night.

Getting up from the his seat, Kaiba again passed the current source of his irritation without even a glace, and walked out of the room, throwing a quick "Wait here" before disappearing.

Joey bustled, trying to indignantly say something to stop the CEO from leaving. Too late. Kaiba was gone, and Joey sighed in defeat.

'_This is crazy'_ Joey sighed, settling back on the desk seat. He glanced over to the laptop's screen, again feeling the familiar boredom associated with waiting. Maybe he could get the internet started on this thing? Just to start some research? He reached out to touch the keys, before freezing. _'Better not…'_ he decided, blowing out a breath and leaning back again. _'Kaiba will kill me…'_

The blond threw his arms up and stretched, before leaning them behind his head. If he had to stay in Kaiba's _mansion_, shouldn't he at least get some leisure privileges? _'Like a little food, maybe?'_

* * *

Ryou pulled the sheets around his lithe frame, feeling a chill suddenly caress his bare skin. He must have left the window open. Forcing himself to open his eyes, The white-haired teen raised his head from the pillow to look at the clock. Almost six o'clock. He wasn't meant to be in bed at this time, but when he had gotten back from school, his lover had been very persistent in getting them both naked and under the sheets for 'some proper fun' as he had described it. 

'_I should get up and get some homework done…' _He thought as he leaned his head back down, this time on the bare chest of the body beside him. _'I did tell Yugi I'd call him after all. We are supposed to be working on our history assignment.'_ But the thought was only half-hearted, and Ryou only closed his eyes as he snuggled against the other's strong torso, wrapping his arms around him.

"You'd rather call that shrimp than spend your time with me?" Bakura suddenly asked his companion, not moving from his face-up, relaxed position. The other caught Ryou by surprise, and he stiffened for a second, before turning his head upward to look at his counter-part. The teen almost smiled before frowning as he registered what the other had said.

"Bakura," Ryou began to chide, although his voice was soft, "You're not supposed to listen to my personal thoughts." They had discussed this before. Bakura had a way of deepening their connection… so much, in fact, that he was able to uninvitedly listen to the teen's personal thoughts. It was disconcerting at first, but, his lover being _Bakura_ after all, Ryou had gotten use to it. The other hardly ever did it, acknowledging his lover's privacy, and only did when he was feeling naughty or wanted to piss the other off. He had still yet to make Ryou actually yell, though.

"And you still haven't answered my question." Their conversation was light, and Ryou knew Bakura wasn't really upset.

The other sighed, as he felt his spirit's fingers begin to move softly through his hair. It felt so relaxing. He leaned his cheek back down on Bakura's chest. Little shows of affection from his lover were rare – few and far apart – so Ryou didn't want to ruin the moment. He could forget about school just this one time. Not studying for _one_ day wouldn't kill him…

"You know? I actually don't feel like researching haunted hotels right now. Maybe… I'll just… stay…" The teen snuggled the other again as he closed his eyes. Resting for just a while more would be okay… he didn't really have a chance against the soothing strokes from his lover anyway.

"Good." Bakura replied bluntly after a while of watching his lover slowly fall into slumber. Ryou didn't say anything, but just nuzzled his chest ever so slightly. The stupid teen was being cute. And Bakura couldn't help but stroke his lover's soft hair. He could always deny it tomorrow if Ryou inquired. But for now, he'd just indulge a little. The kid needed to relax more, anyway. Always so obstinate about studying and talking to his friends. It seemed pointless to the tomb-robber.

* * *

There wasn't much the blond could do but look around the study. Pretty big room. Nice, big, sturdy desk – he knew just _how_ sturdy from last night – Joey coughed at the thought, feeling his cheeks warm with a blush. Moving on… connecting bathroom was a plus. Big windows… not much in the décor, though. Especially compared to the rest of the room… It was actually kind of bland. But he guessed, being _Kaiba's_ study, there wasn't much to be expected. 

Joey sighed. The boring room could only keep him entertained for so long. He spun in the seat for a bit, before stopping in front of the desk. The laptop's screen was glaring at him… _mocking_ him almost. Joey frowned. It was just begging to be used. And who knew _when_ that jerk Kaiba would be returning?

Making his decision – albeit on flawed logic – Joey made his move. He slouched close to the glaring laptop and glared back at it before touching the cursor pad. The bright screensaver instantly disappeared, and he was greeted with the introductory page of the 'Encyclopaedia Tokyo' program. Hmm… Kaiba must have opened it before he left.

'_If he was gonna use it ta research the hotel, what's the harm if I get it started while he's gone?'_ It made perfect sense in his own mind, so Joey clicked on the search bar – with a little difficulty controlling the touch pad – and typed in the focus of his project. _'Golden Spirit Hotel'_. As soon as the teen pressed the enter key, a new page occurred, with a list of dozens of links relating to the Hotel. From the tabs at the top of the page, he worked out that there were a number of different result options he could search.

'_Let's see…' _The blond thought as he scanned over the tabs, _'Geographical Reports… nah, I don' need ta know where it is… History… that might help… Ohh…'_ The blond pursed his lips with wonder, _'Articles! That's gotta be interestin'. Bein' a haunted hotel an' all…'_

Joey clicked on the tab, causing the page to reload and a new set of findings to appear. Each finding contained the title and a few first sentences for each article. He quickly scanned through the first few.

"_**Spirits accommodated at the Golden Spirit?**… The new and increasingly popular Golden Spirit Hotel, located in our very own Fiar Vrone City, has caused quite some controversy as of late, as yet another 'spirit' has claimed to be sighted at the elegant hotel…"_

"_**A Hotel home to Ghosts is dead profit**... The highly popular Golden Spirit Hotel may be subjected to failure, claims a newly dropped investor of the Hotel. Martin Hamilton has told Fair Vrone Weekly why he decided to sell all his stocks concerning the controversial, supposedly 'supernatural' hotel…"_

"_**Golden Hotel Hoax**… Yukina Morimotou, skeptic and owner of the 'Imperial Hotel', claims that the supposed supernatural activity surrounding the Golden Spirit Hotel – a strong competitor to Morimotou's business – is merely a promotional scheme…"_

"_**Murder at the Golden Spirit Hotel**… Last night, at approximately 3:30am, Tori Johnson was stabbed in the chest 13 times while in bed during his stay at the Golden Spirit Hotel, in Fair Vrone City, Tokyo. The 17 year-old 'Fair Vrone High' school student was believed to be staying…"_

The fourth article caught Joey's interest, and – curious - decided to click the link to read the entire report. It was dated quite a long time ago, and was written for the 'Tokyo Morning Press'… as the newspaper was called back then. He began to read the article.

"_Last night, at approximately 3:30am, Tori Johnson was stabbed in the chest 13 times while in bed during his stay at the Golden Spirit Hotel, in Fair Vrone City, Tokyo. The 17 year-old 'Fair-Vrone High' school student was believed to be staying at the hotel with , a 20 year old stock marketer who had made it big in the riches ever since investing early in entertainment businesses. Although police are reluctant to disclose any information regarding the stabbings that killed the young teen during his sleep, it is believed that Kaito Satonori is the murderer, who is currently no where to be found. The Hotel will be closed until further notice."_

Joey frowned. The article wasn't very informative. Seeing a link that read 'related articles' underneath the report, he clicked it and read the first one that he came across.

"_**The Tori Johnson murder put to trail** _

The murder case for Tori Johnson, the 17 year-old high school student from Tokyo, is finally being put to trail. The helpless boy who was stabbed 13 times in the chest while asleep during his stay at the Golden Spirit Hotel, may have a chance to finally rest in peace, as his supposed murderer is being put to trail. The 20 year-old stock marketer, Kaito Satonori, was found attempting to escape the country for Egypt after the murder had taken place. Although a murder weapon was not found, police believe that there is enough evidence to put Satonori behind bars for life.

_Tori Johnson and Kaito Satonori had came to the Hotel together and had occupied the same hotel room. Witnesses of their arrival claim that the boy seemed to have accompanied Satonori willingly, and it is even believed that the two may have shared a homosexual relationship. Although Tori's parents strongly disagree with the allegations, police have found evidence that proves otherwise. 'The possibility of paedophilia is being looked into,' told detective Usegai, who is the lead detective concerning the murder. 'We are looking into past underage murder records, to see if there is any link with Kaito Satonori.' _

_No comments or pleas have been made by Satonori as of yet, who's lawyer announced yesterday that he will not be disclosing any information to the media. 'He Kaito Satonori will make his plea during the hearing and no time before.' The lawyer told the morning press. Many believe this is a sign of guiltiness, however, the sentence will not be made until the trail in two weeks time._

_The end of the trail will announce the re-opening of the Golden Spirit Hotel, as the hotel's spokesperson told newspapers when the hearing was announced. Already, the hotel has been completely booked-out for the first three months, and the management holds 'high hopes for more success'. The Hotel's spokesperson told the Morning Press that 'The unfortunate event of Tori Johnson's death had ironically aroused great success for the hotel. Many people from all over Japan have heard of the news, and want to visit the scene of a real-life murder mystery.'_

_Much controversy surrounds the re-opening of the Golden Spirit, but the hotel has decided to keep the business running. 'If not for the profit, than for the memory of Tori Johnson, who's young life had been unfairly taken within our premises one month ago at precisely 3:21am…'"_

Joey frowned as he read the last figure in his mind. Why did that particular time seem so familiar? The blond was about to move onto the next article when suddenly he heard a cold voice address him from the doorway.

"What are you doing?" The all too-familiar voice demanded. Joey froze in his slouched position, feeling like he was caught with his hand in the cookie-jar, as he turned to look at the CEO before him, making sure to remove his hand from the expensive laptop.

He opened his mouth to speak, but froze once again at the sight of the tall brunette standing in the doorway, looking down at him with that usual degrading glare. Kaiba's arms were crossed as he took in the situation in front of him… but the narrowed eyes didn't have quite the same impact as they usually did, and Joey guessed it was because of the seemingly non-threatening attire the other was uncharacteristically wearing.

Kaiba was dressed casually… in loose black slacks and a dark, slightly big turtle-neck sweater that Joey had to admit looked quite comfy. He looked… well… sexy. Kaiba was still awaiting an explanation, as Joey blinked a few times.

"Ah…" he began to stutter, before mentally shaking his head to clear his thoughts. He wasn't going to let Kaiba - of all people – weaken his defences. "What does it look like?" The teen shot back, moulding back into his defensive state as he stood up. "I'm doin' what I came here to do! Research."

Kaiba frowned as the mutt crossed his arms in defiance, not at all intimidated by him. The CEO frowned at this. He did not like it when he lost his effect on people. He stormed over to the standing blond, who still wasn't deterred.

"And _when_ exactly did I give you permission to use my laptop?" He spoke venomously, standing high in front of the teen, and increasing his glare ten fold. The mutt still wasn't weakened.

"Well, you were gone for so long, I figure _one_ of us may as well get somethin' done," The teen said logically, but with a hint of anger.

Kaiba blinked at the teen. Joey didn't seem intimidated by him at all. And being so forcefully close… he half expected the teen to shrivel up like he had the last two times. He opened his mouth to yell at the blond again, but found that the words just wouldn't come. Staring down into the eyes of the mutt below him suddenly sent a shiver down his body… and suddenly, the slightly pouting lips of the defiant boy before him seemed irresistible.

Joey felt a gasp sound in his throat as the brunette looming over him suddenly swooped down to seal their lips together. The blond was taken totally by surprise, and froze again for a moment when he felt a tingling sensation overcome him at the contact of the other's soft skin. However, when he felt the taller push his hand through his hair, he quickly overcame his shock as pressed their mouths together more forcefully, as Kaiba's other hand found its way around his waist and under his shirt to rub his bare back. All thoughts of the haunted hotel leaving his mind, Joey further responded to the kiss by parting his lips to allow the velvety, wet tongue of the other to slip inside his mouth. He wrapped his arms around the CEO's neck as he felt the other apply pressure to his torso, realizing he was being pushed back onto the very study desk as the two vigorously made-out. The laptop was pushed to the side as Kaiba continued to ravish the blonde mercilessly; Joey, in which, was all too eagre to accept the treatment. As Joey felt a warm hand move from his back to the zip on his pants, it appeared it would be another satisfying night for the two. Of course, also resulting in a lack of research done. But whatever.

* * *

Yugi sighed as he lay back on his bed, reclining against the many soft pillows as the object of his distressed thoughts moved to sit above him, one leg on either side of the teen. Yugi closed his eyes, trying to relax when he saw his pharaoh smile comfortingly down at him. When he felt the other lean over him to begin kissing his neck, Yugi sighed, and tried to revel in feeling as strong hands moved to caress his shoulders. It felt good, Yugi thought, as he allowed himself to feel the sensations coming over his body. It was comforting to feel the gentle – very much alive – touch of his Yami, and the short teen pushed his head back slightly to give the other more room for his delicious ministrations. The caresses on his shoulders turned into a massage and Yugi almost moaned at the feeling. 

Yami made sure to be as gentle as possible with his young lover below him. He knew the other was distressed about something, and he didn't approve of the stubbornness of his Yugi – who persisted in keeping whatever was bothering him a secret – but hoped to at least help the younger forget about it, if he wasn't going to speak about it. He didn't want to force the teen to tell him, so this was the least he could do to help his Yugi.

He instantly felt the built-up stress in the shorter's shoulders, and began to massage them as he kissed the soft, delicate neck; encouraged by the approving sound the other made.

But as Yami continued his ministrations from on top of the teen, Yugi was finding it harder and harder to loose concentration. Being ravished by the pharaoh was relaxing at first, but as the other leaned so close that he could smell his scent, or kissed him so intimately his skin tingled from the contact… it was continually becoming harder to get the despised image out of his mind. The one of blood and death as a dead Yami stared at him from his bed.

He felt the soft caresses from the one he loved so much, and suddenly, he couldn't hold back anymore. Yugi tried to fight it, but it was a fleeting attempt. He felt his arms, stiffly laying flatly on either side of him, begin to shake as he bit his lip strongly, trying to stop a sob breaking from his throat. Tears began to run silently down his cheeks as his oblivious lover continued to kiss him lovingly. He didn't want to loose this… he didn't want to loose _him_. What if what he saw was some kind of premonition? He didn't think that was possible, but ever since he obtained the millennium puzzle… it was kind of hard to believe anything was _im_possible.

Yugi felt his barriers weaken, but he couldn't help it anymore. The thought was too distressing, and he didn't know what to do. He hadn't wanted to concern Yami with what he saw, but keeping up his defences was just too much.

Yami froze as he suddenly felt an overwhelming feeling of distress hit him. All at once, he noticed the shaking of the body below him, the muffled sobs coming from the same body, and the increase of overwhelming emotion as it felt as if a huge barrier was slowly being broken down with each passing second. The feeling almost physically hurt, and the spirit gasped and grabbed his chest, panting as the feeling engulfed him.

Shaking now himself, Yami managed to sit up enough to look down at the boy below him, who's eyes were still closed but expression was twisted in a look of great anguish. What… what was happening? Why was his Yugi suffering? Yami could barely comprehend these thoughts as his lover finally let out a sob, which served to increase the amount of tears flowing down the sensitive cheeks.

Yugi turned his head away, despite his eyes being closed. He could feel his lover's confusion and panic, and it just served to make him more upset. He was scared for his Yami, and now, was also irritated at himself for letting his defences down so Yami would have to suffer too. He felt a shaky, but cool hand cup his cheek, gently pressuring him to face his lover again.

Yami knew he needed to try and push aside the overwhelming feelings, so he could deal with Yugi. It was extremely rare he'd feel an emotion so strong it affected him physically. And this was one of them… had his bad feeling the other day proved to be right? He hoped against the gods that he was wrong for once.

"…Y-Yugi…" The teen attempted a shaky smile down at his crying lover, who opened his eyes reluctantly after being addressed. Looking into his eyes seemed to have provided the youth with more reason to cry, because his eyes instantly filled with tears. The teen tried to turn away from the worried stare, but Yami held his face in place. "Yugi… little one… tell me, tell me why you…" He paused for a second, taking a deep breath as he felt a particularly strong spike of distress hit him, but he stubbornly pushed it aside. He needed to get to the bottom of this.

Trying to keep his tone gentle, Yami continued, looking unwaveringly into his counterpart's eyes. "…Tell me what's wrong… what happened…? Tell me…" The pharaoh almost pleaded. It was all he could do to keep himself from demanding the question.

But Yugi couldn't answer. He wouldn't know how to tell the other about what he saw. Would he be worried? Disgusted? Afraid?

…Sceptical?

Yugi quickly pushed himself up, and wrapped himself around the taller. He didn't say anything as he continued to cry into the shoulder of his lover, holding on for dear life. He needed more than anything right then just to feel his lover's embrace, to know that everything would be okay. He'd tell the other later… but for now, he just needed to take comfort in the feeling that Yami was alive… with him.

Yami sighed as he closed his eyes, resting his cheek on top of the spiky head on his shoulder. He hugged his lover, realizing he wasn't going to get any answers right then, and just focused on comforting his Yugi. He stroked the soft hair and rubbed the shaking back, rocking slightly back and forth as he attempted to soothe his lover without words.

Whatever his koi was keeping from him was obviously a lot worse than he had originally thought…

* * *

TBC. 


	8. The Confused

A/N: IM BACK! SO sorry it took me so long to start up the story again… Starting up Uni took a lil more time outta me than I expected. But no worries… I'm back with a vengeance. Well… I will be. This new chap is a bit short, but it it'll hopefully lead to some good stuff in next chapters. Reviewing always helps to inspire… hint hint…

Thanks to all those who have reviewed so far: yaoi rox my sox, xxmoonlight-angelxx, Kami Beverly, hikarienzeru, markyc58, MutaKu, Yukiko-Angel, Layne, Quarterstaff, edhel-tarien, Dark Magician Of Chaos

mandapandabug, Volt, puffin, Sakusha Saelbu, kye-09: Glad to see you guys are pickin up some of those things :D

Onto the story:

**8. The confused**

**-at another time-**

"Tori, I'd like you to meet a good business partner of mine, Bartholomew Pegasus," The tall brunette said to his younger companion. "We both have strong investments in traditional game entertainment…" The blonde smiled courteously as the tall man shook hands with them both, before taking a seat at their table. "Tori is… a good family friend of mine, Bartholomew."

"Pleasure," The tall, sender man nodded aristocratically, but turned to face the brunette – away from Tori – once he was seated. Tori frowned at the newcomer, eyeing his strangely coloured hair and his hushed whispers as he leaned in close to his companion, talking of something obviously confidential and not meant for his own ears.

Sighing loudly, the young blonde hoped he would get his partner's attention, albeit no such luck. He didn't like that this partner had to show up during _their_ vacation… more even that he was wasting their private dinner time… but he could see that his tall lover was deeply engaged in what the stranger was saying. His usually relaxed expression twisted into a frown as he listened to his colleague, and he glanced briefly at Tori before whispering something back at the other.

The blonde frowned as the aristocratic newcomer nodded quickly and stood. He turned to face the marginalized teen, and politely said goodbye, before turning to his partner one last time.

"Kaito, I'll speak with you soon." He stated before walking away.

Once the blonde was sure the man was out of sight, he leaned in close to the brunette.

"What was that all about?" he questioned with a curious frown. Kaito looked anxious.

"Just business…"

A strong wind suddenly piked up in the dark night outside, banging against the windows of the exquisite restaurant the two lovers awkwardly ate together at.

* * *

Tristan sat seething in his seat at homeroom. With his arms crossed and glare frozen in place, the tall teen looked to each of his so-called 'friends'. Tea and Duke were again fighting with each other, and apparently believed their argument was more important than paying notice to _him_. Joey was staring into space and didn't respond to his calls, and Yugi looked tired and deep in thought. Ryou – quite typically – had his nose stuck in a book. And Tristan was left in the middle of all this chaos surrounding him.

And, on top of all that, Rebecca Cowen was calling him from her seat at the back of the class.

"Yoo-Hoo!" She called… a little louder than necessary, "Tristan! Hey! Come sit next to me, partner!"

Tristan shuddered, pretending to ignore her. Of course, he didn't see how it was possible to _not_ hear her horrible screeches… so with the heavy weight of reluctance, the exasperated brunette decided he may as well get up and face the annoying teen.

"Scream a little louder, I don't think Canada heard you…" the brunette mumbled to himself…

"Hey, Joey…"

Tristan turned to notice Yugi turn to Joey with a hushed voice just as he had began walking to Rebecca… and it was all he could do not to scream himself. Freezing in place, Tristan's eye twitched with repressed rage before he continued to walk to his partner, forcing himself to _not_ be annoyed he was once again _obviously_ being left out of the loop.

"What's up, Yug?" Joey, shaking himself from his thoughts, turned to his friend. He frowned when he saw the other's timid expression. "Hey, what happened? Is this 'bout Yami?" He prided, now fully turning in his seat to give Yugi his complete attention. They continued to talk in hushed tones, fortunate that the others were all distracted some how.

"Well… yes, but not about what happened the other day…" Yugi replied unsurely, biting his lip.

Joey gave his friend an incredulous look. "What? Ya mean somethin' _else_ happened?"

"Well… sort of…"

"Sort of?" The blonde raised his eyebrow, but before the two could continue their conversation, the bell rang. "Oh crap, we have history now, don't we?"

Yugi looked down and swallowed as his friends began to shuffle out of the room. "Yeah… History…"

* * *

"Okay class, I want you all to get together with your partners so you can continue with your work. I assume, my children, that you have _all_ at least _started_ your research. Now come on! Move!"

As the class moved around to sit with their respective partners, Joey looked to the corner. And sighed.

Kaiba wasn't here.

He looked around, just to make sure, seeing that Tea and Duke were still arguing, Yugi and Ryou were talking, and Tristan – for some reason – was glaring at him from across the room next to Rebecca. Joey raised an eyebrow at the Brunette before turning and began to walk towards Yugi and Ryou when the classroom's door suddenly swung open.

"Mr Kaiba… how nice of you to join us," The teacher commented, before turning back to the group she was conferencing with. Joey was unsure whether it was meant as sarcasm, so much like Kaiba, he just ignored the teacher and walked over to the CEO.

The tall brunette had taken a seat at the first available seat he found, typically not bothering to talk – or even look – at any one, and merely pulled out his laptop.

Joey sighed as he sat down on the vacant seat near the other teen.

"Why are ya always so… anti-social?" Joey asked half-heartedly, waving a hand in the air as he leaned over to look at the laptop's screen.

Kiaba froze. "…excuse me?" he said dubiously, sounding as if the two had never spoken before in their lives. Joey just rolled his eyes and relaxed back in his chair, crossing his arms as Kaiba opened some programs. But the blonde frowned when he saw that Miss McArthur was heading their way.

"Oh crap…" he whispered to himself, more than aware they hadn't gotten any research done yet. Kaiba glanced to the side when he heard the other's mumble, and frowned.

"Now, you two!" The teacher said loudly while pulling up a chair to sit in front of the two. "I had better hear that you two have some research for me, and you better have done it together…" she said in what she must have assumed was a warning tone, eyeing the two of them suspiciously. Joey, glancing to his side, noticed that Kaiba was frowning deeply… the sort of frown Joey had seen him wear when he was yelling at Mokuba's teacher on the phone the other day. He figured he better say something before Kaiba guaranteed him an 'F'.

"WELL," Joey said loudly before the CEO could speak, straightening up in his chair. He gave Kaiba a superior look before continuing. "We've been researchin' old newspapers and stuff," Joey spoke confidently, seeing the teacher brighten. "…In the state library's archives."

"Oh?" The teacher looked impressed, and Joey smiled. If he was good at at least one other thing that wasn't duel monsters, it was working his way around teachers.

"Yeah, and we came across alota' articles 'bout the hotel. We found out that the first person who died there was this 17 year old kid… Tori." Joey ended stiffly, hoping the teacher didn't notice the lack of a last name… he couldn't remember.

"Is this right, Mr Kaiba?" She asked the other, still looking pleased.

"…Yes." The other responded strangely. Joey, despite knowing that they hadn't gotten any research done, was still a bit surprised that the proud CEO was going along with his lie. "…_we_ were considering focusing the assignment around… Tori… since he could be seen as the start of the… strange occurrences…"

"Very good!" the teacher smiled at the two, believing their tale. "But you know that you also have to focus on an event and historical figure?"

"We're getting to that." Joey responded easily. "We were gonna work it out today, and do some more research using Kiaba's laptop here…" The blonde smirked internally, noticing the other's eye twitch as he obnoxiously pet the expensive piece of equipment.

"Excellent! Well, you two can get back to work, you appear to be organised enough." The teacher stood and walked over to another group. As soon as she was gone, Kaiba turned to him with a glare.

"How did you know that?" He demanded quietly. Joey, not as intimidated around the other as he had been a few days ago (seeing a guy naked has that effect), merely shrugged.

"Eh, I remember seein' somethin' like that when I played with your laptop yesterday."

Kaiba strengthened his glare, but didn't say anything. Instead, he turned to focus on his laptop. Joey smirked.

_Ring Ring_

Kaiba stopped his typing to stand up and reach into his coat's pocket, swiftly pulling out his cell and hitting the 'talk' button.

"Kaiba." He answered gruffly.

…

"What? No don't mess anything _else_ up, I'm on my way." With that, he ended the call and pocketed his cell again.

"Hey! You can't go anywhere! We got research ta do!" Joey yelled at the other from his seat, and in a more hushed voice, said "We haven't exactly gotten anythin' _done_ yet…"

Kaiba paused. "Fine." He said as he grabbed his bag, "Do what research you can. Meet me tonight, and bring back my laptop. Same time, same place."

By the time Joey had registered what Kaiba had said, the other was already out the door, his laptop discreetly buzzing for attention on its lone spot atop the otherwise empty desk.

Joey had registered the words, but he still couldn't believe them. No _way_ would _Kaiba_ leave his laptop in Joey's hands. All the other's information and private files were on this laptop… of course, they were probably password protected, but that wasn't the point.

Joey smiled proudly at himself.

* * *

"Yugi, I really _am_ sorry I didn't call, I fell asleep, I didn't mean for it to happen," a panicky Ryou tried to explain to his partner.

"I already told you, it's fine Ryou. Don't worry about it." The small teen told his partner politely. But the other frowned.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I've had other things on my mind anyway."

"Hey Yug!"

Yugi turned to see Joey making his way towards them, a laptop in his arms.

"Where'd you get that?" Yugi pointed to the computer, momentarily forgetting about his worries.

"Huh? Oh this…" Joey placed the book-sized laptop onto Yugi's desk, sitting down beside him and Ryou, "Kaiba left it with me, he had to leave for a meetin' or somethin'… what?" He asked defensively when he received only incredulous looks.

"He… _left_ it with you? _Kaiba_? _The_ Seto Kaiba?" Ryou begged the question.

"Yes, _the_ Seto Kaiba." Joey rolled his eyes. "You know he's not as scary as he thinks he is." The blonde said distractedly, as he fiddled with the laptop's touch pad. He was completely oblivious to the wide-eyed stares of his two friends beside him.

"Anyways," Joey continued, "I need ya guys ta help me out here. I know jack about this haunted place… and I know Miss McArthur's a bit loony and all, but even _I_ wont be able ta keep foolin' her much longer. So what've you guys got?"

"Uhh…" Yugi bit his lip nervously. Ryou looked just as hesitant beside him.

"Actually… I haven't been able to fit in too much research for history lately…" Ryou trailed off lamely.

"Well…" Joey pondered, a finger to his chin, "I did find somethin' the other day 'bout this kid… Tori or somethin'. Apparently he was the first one ta get killed there."

"Hmm…" Ryou thought aloud, "The first death was a kid? That is a bit eerie… Maybe if I could just…" and the light-haired teen reached tentatively towards the laptop, looking up questioningly at Joey.

"Go ahead, it ain't mine." Joey waved at the other, and Ryou started typing furiously away at the keys as Joey elaborated. "Yeah, around our age I think. Tori… somethin'…"

"Johnson." Ryou informed proudly. He turned the screen to show the other two a black and white portrait picture of a young-looking man. He had light hair and was wearing an old-fashioned suit that didn't really quite suit the man's almost scruffy hair.

"That's him?" Yugi asked, pointing to the picture.

"That's what is says here." Ryou informed, before squinting closely at the image. "You know… he kind of looks like you, Joey…"

"Hey… yeah… wow that's weird…" Yugi agreed, mystified.

"Pft," Joey harrumphed, "Nah he doesn't." But the other two were still starring fixedly at the uncanny look-alike.

"How'd he die?"

"Somethin' bout being stabbed," Joey shrugged. "Anyway, we still need famous people and events-"

"I wonder how it happened…?" Yugi asked absently, still fixed on the picture with a worried sort of frown. The mention of murder reminded the short teen of the vision… or whatever it was… he had of Yami the day before. "I mean… how could any one do that? Just… _murder_ someone… and he's _our_ age…" the teen trailed off in thought. He looked closely at the eyes in the picture… the eyes of Tori Johnson… eyes that have been dead for dozens of years now…

…_dead eyes looking towards him…_

"Yug?"

"Huh!" Yugi started, shaking himself from his thoughts.

"Uh… Yug, are you okay?" Joey asked with a raised eyebrow, but concern was evident in the blonde's voice. "You kinda sounded a little… weird…"

"Ah…" Yugi forced a sheepish grin, and shook his head dismissively, but unconsciously was hugging his midsection. "Yeah, fine. It's just a little…"

"Disconcerting?" Ryou supplied for the smaller teen sympathetically.

"Yeah."

Yugi was sure the other had no idea just how right he was.

…

"Why is Tristan glaring at us from across the room?"

* * *

TBC


End file.
